The US Corn Refiners Association (CRA) has said high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is not responsible for rising obesity levels in the US.
The defence of HFCS comes in response to a commentary in the April issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition which linked a rise in consumption of high fructose corn syrup to a rise in obesity.
“No single food ingredient, including high fructose corn syrup, is the culprit behind the nation’s obesity epidemic. Increased caloric intake and lack of physical activity are to blame,” the CRA said.
The CRA added that the ratio of fructose to glucose in the American diet is little changed from thirty years ago.
“Moreover, it is important to note that obesity is also on the rise in Mexico and Europe, both of which do not consume HFCS,” the CRA said.
The commentary was written by Dr. George A. Bray, Boyd professor at the Louisiana State University System’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center, and Dr. Barry M. Popkin and Samara Joy Nielsen from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
