When it comes to ultra-processed foods (UPFs), the waters are a little muddy.
It’s difficult to properly define a UPF, but generally it’s one that contains preservatives, additives, or sweeteners. The likes of pizzas, processed meats donuts, energy bars, fizzy drinks and sweets all naturally fall into the bracket, but some are less unhealthy than others.
Essentially, it comes down to what those additives are. For example, a lot is being made over cane sugar being less bad for us than corn syrup, and the latter is an ingredient in the firing line of the Trump administration’s Make America Healthy Again initiative.
President Trump recently jumped the gun with a claim that Coca-Cola would begin using cane sugar instead of corn syrup in the US, bringing it in line with the EU version of the beloved soft drink. While that assertion was premature, it’s a sign of where the MAHA movement is aiming.
But what is corn syrup, and why is it supposedly worse than cane sugar?
Cane sugar, corn syrup and high-fructose corn syrup
For starters, corn syrup has two versions: regular corn syrup, and high-fructose corn syrup. Fructose is the naturally-occurring sugar found in fruit.
Cane sugar typically comes in its granulated form, or as raw cane sugar, or evaporated cane juice used in sweetened drinks.
“Cane sugar is derived from sugarcane and is comprised of 50% glucose and 50% fructose molecules,” said Megan Meyer, a science communications consultant from Durham, North Carolina.
Meyer explained that corn syrup, conversely, ‘is made from the starch of corn kernels and is essentially 100% glucose’.
The distinction between corn syrup and high-fructose corn syrup is a regular point of confusion, too.
“People often confuse corn syrup — what you can buy on the shelf at the grocery — with high-fructose corn syrup, which is generally used by food manufacturers,” explained dietician and culinary medicine consultant Leah Sarris.
Sarris continued by explained that high-fructose corn syrup is produce by switching some of the glucose to fructose, making it sweeter and bringing its composition closer to cane sugar which itself has a near-50/50 split of glucose and fructose.
How sweeteners are absorbed by the body
The health concerns around these three sweeteners come down to how the body absorbs them.
With cane sugar, the glucose and fructose are bound together. As explained by Dr Erika Hutz from Endeavor Health, ‘the body must first break apart sucrose from cane sugar before absorbing its glucose and fructose components’.
Because high-fructose corn syrup contains separated glucose and fructose, the body doesn’t need to break them apart. Because of this, the glucose and fructose are absorbed more rapidly, potentially causing steeper spikes in blood-sugar and triggering a stronger insulin release.
When the body regularly releases high levels of insulin, it can start becoming resistant to the hormone. The resultant lack of blood-sugar control can lead to type 2 diabetes.
“The negative health concerns with eating too much corn syrup arise when any added sugar is consumed in excess. Too much sugar — of any kind — has been attributed to a variety of health conditions such as weight gain and obesity, Type 2 diabetes, and heart disease,” explained Meyer.
While this concern is long-standing, many studies comparing cane sugar with high-fructose corn syrup have shown only minor differences in their effects on blood pressure, cholesterol and weight gain.
Cane sugar, while slower to absorb than high-fructose corn syrup, has plenty of associated health concerns too.
“Excess intake of added sugars from any source can lead to weight gain, insulin resistance, dental cavities, and increased risk for cardiovascular disease. The issue isn't just the type of sugar — it's how much we’re consuming across the board,” said Hultz.
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Rachael Davis