How Does the Consumption of Fructose and High Fructose Corn Syrup Impact the Health of Children and Adolescents?

Abstract

How does the consumption of fructose and high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) impact the health of children and adolescents? The media has lead consumers to believe that HFCS is detrimental to health and has aggravated obesity. The rates of obesity in school age children and adolescents have tripled in the last 30 years, but are fructose and HFCS contributing to the problem (http://www.CDC.gov, 2009)? In the early 1980s, HFCS replaced sucrose, or table sugar, in most sweetened beverages. This coincided with the rise in obesity. Today, average daily consumption of fructose, largely as a component of HFCS, in the United States is 54.7 g or approximately 13 teaspoons of table sugar per person per day (Vos, Kimmons, Gillespie, Welsh, Michels Blanck, 2008). Consumption of fructose is significantly higher among adolescents at 72.8 g per day (Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics, 2009; Vos et al., 2008). To better understand the issue, it is important to understand the nature of sugars. There are two main categories of sugars—monosaccharides and disaccharides. Monosaccharides are the most basic form of sugars and include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Disaccharides consist of two monosaccharides held together by a glycosidic bond (Schorin, 2004). Sucrose, or table sugar, is composed of fructose and glucose in a 50:50 ratio. HFCS is a synthetic monosaccharide, also created from fructose and glucose, but in varying ratios based on intended use. Fructose, a core component of sucrose and HFCS, occurs naturally in fruits and vegetables; however, the majority of fructose consumption today is through sweetened beverages and packaged