Eating Raw While In College (And After!)

Eating Raw While In College (And After!)

Saturday, June 30, 2012

How synthetic sugar afffects the brain

Photo: "Synapse [is] critical to tasks like memory and learning—the very functions that high-fructose corn syrup damages." The average American eats upwards of 40 POUNDS of high-fructose corn syrup per year!*
 In case you haven't heard about this highly debated sweetener, let me elaborate for you: (High) Fructose Corn Syrup is a man-made sweetener synthetically derived from the glucose (sugar) in genetically modified corn. It is not a natural process to obtain this ingredient: 1) first, genetically modified corn is grown and processed in order to 2) extract the starch which is then 3) broken down into glucose (sugar), which is then  4) chemically treated and transformed into fructose, a highly sweet version of the sugar which normally only occurs in fruits. Though the FDA approves of it and the government promotes and subsidizes it, it has been correlated to the promotion of obesity, diabetes, high insulin levels, metabolic inefficiency, heart attack, weight gain, dental cavities, anemia, fatigue, poor immunity, an increase in LDL (bad) Cholesterol and Triglycerides levels . . . . the list goes on. Recently discovered, corn syrup also holds negative and degenerative effects upon the brain, particularly in the fields of memory retention, ineffective synapse, destruction of the mylon sheath etc. 

In one study on how high-fructose corn syrup affects brain function, researchers studied two groups of rats: One group downed high-fructose corn syrup in water for six weeks; another dined on high-fructose corn syrup but also received doses of brain-protecting omega-3 fatty acids.
Before their high-fructose corn syrup diet began, the rats were all trained to navigate a maze. After eating the sweetener for six weeks, researchers put the rats to the maze test again. The animals that didn't receive the omega-3 brain protection were slower and experienced problems with brain signaling, which disrupts critical skills like memory and thinking. Researchers also witnessed signs of insulin resistance in the group without omega-3s; this could hamper normal energy processing, which could impact thoughts, emotions, memory, and learning, according to Gomez-Pinilla. "Our study shows that a high-fructose diet harms the brain as well as the body," he adds. "This is something new."  
 

*My college biology textbook [2011 edition] states that the average American eats OVER 100 LBS, however the article cited below claims 40 :) crazy, right?! I would say it's probably somewhere in the middle. 
Article cited: http://www.rodale.com/health-effects-high-fructose-corn-syrup?cm_mmc=OGGazette-_-922504-_-05242012-_-the_common_food_ingredient_thats_making_you_stupid_readmore
"Synapse [is] critical to tasks like memory and learning—the very functions that high-fructose corn syrup damages." The average American eats upwards of 40 POUNDS of high-fructose corn syrup per year!*
In case you haven't heard about this highly debated sweetener, let me elaborate for you: (High) Fructose Corn Syrup is a man-made sweetener synthetically derived from the glucose (sugar) in genetically modified corn. It is not a natural process to obtain this ingredient: 1) first, genetically modified corn is grown and processed in order to 2) extract the starch which is then 3) broken down into glucose (sugar), which is then 4) chemically treated and transformed into fructose, a highly sweet version of the sugar which normally only occurs in fruits. Though the FDA approves of it and the government promotes and subsidizes it, it has been correlated to the promotion of obesity, diabetes, high insulin levels, metabolic inefficiency, heart attack, weight gain, dental cavities, anemia, fatigue, poor immunity, an increase in LDL (bad) Cholesterol and Triglycerides levels . . . . the list goes on. Recently discovered, corn syrup also holds negative and degenerative effects upon the brain, particularly in the fields of memory retention, ineffective synapse, destruction of the mylon sheath etc.
In one study on how high-fructose corn syrup affects brain function, researchers studied two groups of rats: One group downed high-fructose corn syrup in water for six weeks; another dined on high-fructose corn syrup but also received doses of brain-protecting omega-3 fatty acids.
Before their high-fructose corn syrup diet began, the rats were all trained to navigate a maze. After eating the sweetener for six weeks, researchers put the rats to the maze test again. The animals that didn't receive the omega-3 brain protection were slower and experienced problems with brain signaling, which disrupts critical skills like memory and thinking. Researchers also witnessed signs of insulin resistance in the group without omega-3s; this could hamper normal energy processing, which could impact thoughts, emotions, memory, and learning, according to Gomez-Pinilla. "Our study shows that a high-fructose diet harms the brain as well as the body," he adds. "This is something new."


*My college biology textbook [2011 edition] states that the average American eats OVER 100 LBS, however the article cited below claims 40 :) crazy, right?! I would say it's probably somewhere in the middle.
Article cited: http://www.rodale.com/health-effects-high-fructose-corn-syrup?cm_mmc=OGGazette-_-922504-_-05242012-_-the_common_food_ingredient_thats_making_you_stupid_readmore

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