Does High Fructose Corn Syrup Make You Socially Unacceptable?

Thirty years ago, few people knew about lactase enzyme deficiency.  Some knew that they developed diarrhea and gastrointestinal complaints if they drank milk or ate dairy products, but few knew that the normal state for humans is to be unable to digest lactose (milk sugar), and that a genetic mutation has allowed some people to drink milk without any lactose-related problems.

Just as some individuals may not be able to digest milk sugar because they lack a specific digestive enzyme, a few may have a rare condition, hereditary fructose intolerance, which leaves them unable to digest fructose, the sugar found in many fruits and in foods containing high fructose corn syrup as a sweetener.  This relatively rare condition is serious and can lead to severe metabolic complications.  A different, less serious,  medical condition is fructose malabsorption   "...in which the cells of the intestine cannot absorb fructose normally, leading to bloating, diarrhea or constipation, flatulence, and stomach pain. Fructose malabsorption is thought to affect approximately 40 percent of individuals in the Western hemisphere."

If you don't feel well when you consume those high-fructose drinks or snacks, it may not be your imagination. You might have a rare condition, hereditary fructose intolerance, or just be one of the 40% of our population who malabsorb fructose. The treatment is straight-forward: avoid high fructose foods.

If you are interested, see the National Institutes of Health publication,   The Genetics Home Reference  on hereditary fructose intolerance.  You might learn that those pains in your belly, that gas that embarasses you, and your other strange abdominal complaints are related to that ubiquitous high fructose corn syrup  sweetener, passed off as nutritionally benign, which might be causing you difficulty.

Read the food label. If you know that the ingredient listed doesn't agree with you, don't buy or eat the product. You will feel better and be more socially acceptable!