Sweet DeathGlucose and fructose are closely related simple sugars. The former, commonly referred to

Sweet DeathGlucose and fructose are closely related simple sugars. The former, commonly referred to as “blood sugar,” is the body’s main source of energy, with blood carrying it to all cells for fuel or storage. Glucose comes primarily from the consumption of foods rich in carbohydrates, such as bread and potatoes. Until the 1960s, the major dietary source of fructose was fruit and vegetables. Then came development of high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), an artificial sweetener made from corn starch that has become ubiquitous in the modern American diet, with corresponding increases in rates of obesity and type 2 diabetes.The general evils of HFCS as a health threat are well-known and well-disseminated. The mechanistic link between fructose and metabolic diseases is much more tenuous. In a new Perspective, published in Cell Metabolism, authors Michael Karin, PhD, of UC San Diego School of Medicine and Mark A. Febbraio of Monash University in Australia summarize recent studies of fructose biology and pathology, which they describe as “a metabolic toxin that targets the gut-liver axis.”Specifically, they note that dietary fructose is not exclusively metabolized in the liver, but also in the small intestine, resulting in intestinal epithelial barrier deterioration. Thus fructose-induced diseases involve multiple components of the body, systemic inflammation and may trigger other disease-provoking macronutrients, such as excess fat or cholesterol. — Scott LaFee -- source link

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