Corn syrup

Corn syrup, declared on German food on the ingredient list from a content of 5 % fructose as glucose -fructose syrup, sugar is a concentrate which is produced enzymatically from starch of maize. Also common are the abbreviations JRC or HFCS ( high fructose corn syrup engl. ) in the USA.

Sweetening power

Fructose has a significantly higher sweetening power than glucose. By reducing the proportion of glucose with a simultaneous increase of the Fructoseanteiles the sweetening syrup without changing the substance content can be significantly increased. Therefore, the increase of Fructoseanteiles by converting the glucose is economical because a similar sweetening power is achieved with a smaller amount of material. Since 1978 can be reduced to fructose with the enzyme glucose isomerase, the proportion of glucose and fructose 90% ( HFCS 90) can be increased by new separation methods, or by isomerization of glucose. Since the corn production is subsidized in the U.S., while the sugar import must be cleared through customs, this sweetener is very inexpensive. The mixture of HFCS -42 and HFCS -90, HFCS -55 results, also has a 55% by weight fructose. This mixture is also used in the soft drink industry.

In Germany

After the German sugars Regulation must be a glucose syrup containing more than 5% fructose by weight in the dry matter, are referred to as " glucose -fructose syrup ". Contains fructose syrup a greater than 50 %, it must show as " fructose -glucose syrup " are referred to.

In the United States

In the U.S., about High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS ) processed variant has a high economic and health importance because it is used there for the overwhelming majority of all soft drinks as caloric sweeteners. Corn syrup may be prepared by conversion of the low cost of corn starch with the enzyme amylase and other starch degrading enzymes since 1972. This first variant HFCS (HFCS -42) has used a fructose content of 42% and is mainly used for the production of sweet drinks and canned goods.

HFCS -55 contains accordance with the National Soft Drink Association (USA ) about 77 % dry matter and 23 % water. The dry substance is divided into 55 % fructose, 41 % glucose, 2% maltose and 2% higher carbohydrates. Other substances should be present only in traces.

Health

A health problem of the HFCS produced possibly by the fact that the sugar is not being the dominant glucose, but fructose. In contrast to glucose, the fructose is metabolized independently of insulin. Since insulin indirectly has an interest in the production of satiety and also fructose to promote fat synthesis in higher quantities, can be caused by the strong use of HFCS as a sweetener may, obesity, metabolic syndrome, obesity (obesity ), high blood pressure, gout or even Chronic kidney damage. " Classical " sucrose, obtained from eg sugar beet or cane sugar and declared or granulated sugar, consists of 50 % of fructose and glucose. Thus, according to the monomerization ( separation of the two sugar units ), the sucrose and absorption of monosaccharides metabolized at least one half of the recorded amount of fuel insulin-dependent, whereby at least the danger of over- saturation of the activation of the insulin-dependent satiety is reduced.

Additionally, there is a small portion of the population ( 1:20000-1:50000 which are 0.005 % -0.002 % of the population ), the problem of hereditary fructose intolerance. This is a very serious disease and must be treated based on a strict diet.

A fructose malabsorption however is present at approximately one-third of the population, but causes half of the cases no complaints. In the case of complaints, it helps to pay attention to a low-fructose diet.

These problems are not limited to corn syrup derivatives, but occur in all products that contain fructose, so even with the invert sugar used as an alternative.

Furthermore, it is suspected that cancer cells use fructose for cell division and reproduction. One in vitro study by the University of California, Los Angeles, according to fructose can promote the growth of pancreatic cancer.