Sweetener danger in food

High levels of fructose are proving a danger to health because the body cannot register when it's full

Health experts have issued an urgent warning about the growing use of an industrial "super-sweetener" in junk food and fizzy drinks.

The syrup, which is eight times sweeter than refined sugar, has been used in huge quantities in America for 20 years and is increasingly common in Britain.

It has a longer shelf-life than sugar and is highly resistant to contamination by bacteria. As a liquid, it is also easier to blend into drinks.

However, studies in America have linked fructose with a build-up of fats in the body that can lead to cardiovascular disease.

Dr David Haslam, chairman of Britain's National Obesity Forum, said: "Products such as high-fructose corn syrup are very good for companies' figures but very bad for consumers."

Dr Beckie Lang, an obesity researcher at the University of Teesside, said: "Fructose does not suppress appetite in the same way other sugars do. If you drink a can of soft drink sweetened by fructose, your body does not register the calories - instead it says 'It's time for my next meal, I must eat again'."

Labour MP Dr Howard Stoate, chairman of the Commons all-party obesity group, said he was concerned about how much high-fructose corn syrup was used in packaged food and drinks.

He called on manufacturers to include fructose on labels so the public know what they are consuming.

Last month the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition uncovered evidence of a link between high-fructose corn syrup and obesity. This month, the journal is said to have found a similar link between fructose and diabetes.

However, the link with obesity is disputed by the sugar industry. Dr Richard Cottrell, a nutritionist who advises the Sugar Council, said: " Highfructose corn syrup is only a big issue in America. In Europe it is strictly controlled by a small quota."

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