Kristen told us about the recently-launched high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) ad campaign. By now, you've probably seen the commercials. The ads bother me to no end. Not only because they imply that HFCS is natural ("it's made from corn") but because of the disturbing way the people are portrayed.

The people who are concerned about HFCS in the commercials come off rude, condescending, and uninformed. Seriously. Would you actually tell a friend that you don't think they care what they feed their kids? On the other hand, the people who think HFCS is fine are knowledgeable and polite. Personally, I think the commercials poke fun at people who are health-conscious and care about what they put in their bodies.

CBS News launched an investigation and found that three of the six studies supporting the Corn Refiners Association's claim that HFCS is no different than sugar were funded by organizations that stand to profit from HFCS acceptance. It's not unusual for parties with a vested interest to fund studies, but it does give reason to raise a questioning eyebrow.

[via FitSugar]

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Splenda: Love it or hate it? We all know one group who definitely counts Splenda among its enemies: The sugar industry.

Chances are you came across the recent news that Splenda has been labeled unsafe by researchers at Duke University -- according to these findings, Splenda promotes obesity, destroys 'good' intestinal bacteria and prevents prescription drugs from being absorbed. But The New York Times recently pointed out that the study was founded by none other than Splenda's main competitor, a sugar manufacturer.

Blah blah blah. We've heard this all before in the HFCS debate. And let's be honest -- this bickering getting old, not to mention irritating. Is it too much to ask for a neutral third party to step in and tell us once and for all what the deal is? In the meantime, I don't think either in moderation will kill you.

(via Calorie Lab)

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We've been hearing for years that high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is bad for us -- that it causes obesity and other related health problems. And, earlier this year, the FDA ruled that HFCS is "not natural." However, an ad campaign has been launched to try to change our minds.

Have you seen these commercials? I can't say that I disagree with part of their message -- inform yourself about what you're eating. The problem is that the HFCS industry wants to be the ones informing you via their website, SweetSurprise.com. And, sorry, but that's not exactly an unbiased source.

So why are these ads coming out now? There could be many reasons, including the fact that major food retailers, like Kraft, are starting to label products as HFCS-free because so many people are trying to cut it out of their diets. The fact of the matter is that it's extremely difficult to avoid HFCS -- it's everywhere. A number of studies have shown a link between HFCS and obesity, especially in children. HFCS doesn't give you the full feeling you should have after consuming it, leading you to consume more calories and gain weight.

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Agave nectar has shown up as tidbits in various post on That's Fit before, whether it's an ingredient in a hot chocolate recipe or an element of a celebrity's diet. But for those of you who don't know the details of what this sweet syrup is, where it comes from and why it's a good alternative to sugar or artificial sweeteners, this is for you:

Agave nectar is derived from a Mexican plant and considered a healthy alternative to sugar and artificial sweeteners because it's naturally derived and has a low glycemic effect, which is explained thoroughly in this article on Shake Off the Sugar a web site devoted to low-carb options and reducing sugar intake. And here's another article about the trend in use of agave as a sweet alternative.

As for me, I use it in tea and baking recipes as well as in my morning oatmeal. The other day, I used it in lemonade. But I found adding a little organic sugar made the taste of the lemons come out more. Call me crazy.

My experiments have been fun and mostly successful. And I can vouch for agave's low glycemic load as I'm a type 1 diabetic using an insulin pump to control blood sugar and testing often. The effect of agave nectar on my blood sugar is minimal. But of course other experiences might be different. Our bodies are not entirely identical in how they react to various substances. And I'm not your doctor, so talk to yours about how you might use agave in your diet.

You can usually find agave in your local health food store. My local Super Target stocks it too. And you can buy online too. Sweet!

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Here's another lab rat study to bash the effect of artificial sweeteners. This time it all but makes you think the only option is to just go back to regular old sugar! A small bit of research is indicating that zero-calorie sweeteners could be making it harder for you to lose weight.

How? By tricking your body into thinking sweetness doesn't mean extra calories. Basically, they're saying these artificial substitutes could make it a little harder to gauge caloric intake (which could lead to gaining weight). In addition, they're also pointing to a loose connection between high sales of diet soda and a rise in obesity. Considering the widespread use of sweeteners now in such drinks, they may not be too far off the mark.

But naturally, companies producing these sweetener products call this study irrelevant. For one, it used lab rats -- and a very small number as well. Less than 30 rats were used to test these claims, causing one dietitian to say it does a disservice to the consumer. The weight gain observed in lab rats may not have any relevance to humans, after all, but it won't keep people from debating the effectiveness of artificial sweeteners.

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Finally, there may be something on the horizon capable of sweetening our food and drink without adding to the chemical craze that keeps us wondering if sugary additives will one day poison us. It's called Rebiana, and it might just be the sugar substitute we've been waiting for.

Rebiana, a plant from Paraguay that uses leaves from the stevia plant, is unlike other additives: It begins its life as a living, breathing organism. Wow, it's natural -- and reportedly tastes good too.

Rebiana is currently spending its days under the microscope to ensure it's up to task of widespread use in the United States. Stay tuned for more developments.

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I've heard so much good stuff about Stevia, even on That's Fit. So it caught my eye when our friends at Diet Blog asked the question is stevia safe? Turns out the FDA sent a letter to Hain Celestial Group Inc. about their use of stevia as a food additive in some of their products. Now, according to the FDA, stevia is fine as a food supplement, but not as a food additive. Why? Because the FDA considers stevia as unsafe as a food additive. Moreover, they claim that there is insufficient data to support that stevia is safe.

Concerned yet? I am. For more info on stevia, read the full article.

Do you use stevia?

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I'm a fan of foods without sugar. But sometimes I worry about items labeled sugar-free that still retain a semi-sweet taste. How can this be? How can something sugar-free taste so, well, sugary?

It all comes down to two words: Artificial and sweeteners. Like aspartame, the sweetener no one is really too sure about.

According to an article in the Fall/Winter 2007 issue of Beyond, a magazine all about breast cancer, long-term studies of low doses of aspartame given to rats beginning in the womb indicated a cancer connection. A different study of humans, published in the January 2007 Annals of Oncology, contradicts this conclusion, though, revealing there is no link between the use of artificial sweeteners and cancer. Data is just not strong enough to say anything about human risk.

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Is sugar of another name still as bad for you? Yes, particularly when it goes by the name 'High Fructose Corn Syrup.' Don't be fooled by this fancy name -- HFCS is sugar, plain and simple, and it lurks in places you wouldn't think. Back in the Skinny Jeans did a bit of research and found that HFCS is in many so-called 'healthy' items, including:

• Yoplait yogurt, even the 'light' ones
• Salad dressings, especially the light ones
  
• Skinny Cow Ice Cream Sandwiches (noooooooooooooooo!!)
  
• Smart Ones desserts
• Special K -- all flavours!
• 100 calorie snack packs

Kinda depressing, huh? The moral of the story is read the labels. You never know what's lurking in your food. For more info, check out the original post.

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How much do you know about sugar? I consider myself somewhat of an expert in the field of eating sugar (particularly in chocolate form) but admittedly, I don't know that much about it.

What we know as sugar is actually comprised of two sweeteners: Glucose and Fructose. Glucose is the fuel that your body runs on, so in a way, it's good for you. Fructose, on the other hand, is the dark side of sugar, so to speak. As WebMD points out, in a study using volunteers, half of which consumed Glucose-sweetened drinks and half of which consumed fructose-sweetened drinks, the Fructose drinkers were shown to be at greater risk for heart disease than the glucose-drinkers. However, people in both groups gained about the same amount of weight, so it goes to show that any sort of sugar is bad for those trying to lose weight.

I wonder -- can you purchase glucose-only sugars? Or does it always come with Fructose?

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Honey has been around since the beginning of time, and with technology giving us so many artificial and chemical alternatives for everything from sweeteners to healing aids to beauty products it's easy to forget that something so simple and "old" has such an amazing list of benefits and properties. Good for everything from sweetening your tea to helping with insomnia, honey also has antibacterial properties and can sometimes even help with seasonal allergies.

This makes all the news lately about the honeybees struggling and disappearing especially distressing!

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Let's face it: sugar is bad for us. It's comprised of empty calories that don't give up an energy and end up being stored as fat. We know this by now. So what's the alternative for those of us that have a serious sweet tooth? Artificial sweeteners? Nah – they're often said to be just as bad for us, even toxic, and I find that they leave me feeling bloated. But there's a natural low-cal sweetener out there that you may have heard of: Stevia. So if we could switch from sugar to stevia, we would probably see a pretty big change in our weightloss. What do you think?

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You've seen all the knocks against sweeteners by now. Refined sugar is causing a diabetes epidemic. Aspartame is a toxic manmade chemical and people are finding it's better used as ant poison than as a sweetener. And Splenda is proving to be as problematic as other artificial sweeteners, because it contains chlorine.

So are we stuck? Must we go through our lives without anything sweet ever again? I certainly don't plan to.

I found a sweetener that is not only completely natural (comes from the leaf of a plant) but it also stabilizes blood sugar and acts as an antiviral agent, in that it can stop the onset of cold or flu. It's called stevia (pronounced STEE-vee-uh or STEH-vee-uh).

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