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Obesity is due to the introduction of high fructose corn syrup and decades of the sugar industry making out that "low fat" foods in the shops are better for you

Obesity is due to the introduction of high fructose corn syrup and decades of the sugar industry making out that "low fat" foods in the shops are better for you, whilst lacing them with sugar to make them taste better.

cameronh90 5y ago
HFCS isn't used much in Europe, but obesity rates are still following the US curve here (albeit a decade or three behind, depending on country). Processed or sugar laden foods may be the culprit but the science isn't at all settled.
- skocznymroczny 5y ago
  > HFCS isn't used much in Europe, Maybe in the past, but these days when I do grocery shopping in Poland, most products have it
  - cameronh90 5y ago
    https://www.diabetes.org.uk/research/research-round-up/behind-the-headlines/high-fructose-corn-syrup-fuelling-diabetes https://www.diabetes.org.uk/research/research-round-up/behin... At least in the UK, we consume very little HFCS, but we are one of the European nations closest behind the US on the obesity scale. No idea how much HFCS you have in Poland, but you're relatively thin compared to us, so if you have more HFCS.. possibly points the finger at something other than HFCS content. Also it's interesting that pets, lab animals and city wildlife are getting fat globally too on a similar curve to humans.
    - simonh 5y ago
      Poster said these days, so it may be HFCS just hasn't been common in Poland for long enough to have a demographic effect. Personally I think yes HFCS is a problem, but basically it's just massive consumption of surplus calories.
      - amanaplanacanal 5y ago
        I still can’t see how that would affect lab animals on a tightly controlled diet.
        simonh 5y ago
        How what would affect them, massive consumption of excess calories or consumption of HFCS? And affect them how? I'm guessing it makes them fat, but as I said I know it's a problem. I've no idea what point you're trying to make.
        amanaplanacanal 5y ago
        Lab animals on a controlled diet are also gaining weight, without taking in excess calories. This would suggest that some environmental factor is causing the weight gain.
        pc86 5y ago
        Do you have a link to the study(ies) showing statistically significant disparate weight gain in otherwise identical lab animals?
        amanaplanacanal 5y ago
        I believe this has been discussed on HN before: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rspb.2010.1890 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rspb.2010...
- AlexandrB 5y ago
  HFCS is "high" in fructose in relative terms but is actually quite similar to "normal" sugar (55% fructose vs 50% fructose). I think you're right that the real culprit is probably that sugar is being shoved into everything, including staples like bread.
dagurp 5y ago
Obesity is a problem in lots of places where the use of HFCS is uncommon. I would say the main issue is sedentary lifestyles and the high availability of cheap and unhealthy fast foods (in crazy portions).
- scroot 5y ago
  I think it's not about HFCS specifically, but rather the norm that was established by the availability of cheap (via a subsidized corn industry in the US) sugars that could be placed in anything. As far as I understand, HFCS does not have any biochemical effects that are different from other added sugars. It's more the economics and culture it created for food production.
graeme 5y ago
Monocausal thinking doesn’t suit a complex system. HFCS increases obesity. But you have increasing obesity in regions without it, and have people who eat it who aren’t obese. It’s neither necessary nor sufficient and your comment contributes nothing to evaluating the role of microplastics.
- Retric 5y ago
  Vast quantities of extra calories are needed for large segments of the population to be obese. That kind of surplus is very recent and absolutely required for an obesity epidemic. So we absolutely have the root cause, but not perhaps the only one.
  - gizmo686 5y ago
    Not really. The difference between obese and healthy weight is about 40 pounds. At 3,500 calories per pound, that is only 140,000 surplus calories to become obese. Over a period of 5 years, that is about 77 calories a day, or roughly 1 egg. Obesity is not caused by a vast availability of calories. It is caused by a breakdown in the bodies ability to match caloric input with output. To be clear, vast amounts of added sugar seem to cause this system to breakdown, but the mechanism is more complicated than simple calories available in the environment.
    - matheusmoreira 5y ago
      > It is caused by a breakdown in the bodies ability to match caloric input with output. Not a breakdown. The human body is just way too efficient. Absurdly so. Humans can exercise for hours and not burn 1000 kcal but it takes mere minutes to ingest that many calories.
      - Retric 5y ago
        That depends on the exercise and your body eight. A 200lb guy can burn over 1,000 calories an hour during a heavy workout. Though few can keep that up for a full hour. That’s how you end up with serious athletes on 8-10,000 calorie diets.

cameronh90 5y ago

HFCS isn't used much in Europe, but obesity rates are still following the US curve here (albeit a decade or three behind, depending on country). Processed or sugar laden foods may be the culprit but the science isn't at all settled.

skocznymroczny 5y ago
> HFCS isn't used much in Europe, Maybe in the past, but these days when I do grocery shopping in Poland, most products have it
- cameronh90 5y ago
  https://www.diabetes.org.uk/research/research-round-up/behind-the-headlines/high-fructose-corn-syrup-fuelling-diabetes https://www.diabetes.org.uk/research/research-round-up/behin... At least in the UK, we consume very little HFCS, but we are one of the European nations closest behind the US on the obesity scale. No idea how much HFCS you have in Poland, but you're relatively thin compared to us, so if you have more HFCS.. possibly points the finger at something other than HFCS content. Also it's interesting that pets, lab animals and city wildlife are getting fat globally too on a similar curve to humans.
  - simonh 5y ago
    Poster said these days, so it may be HFCS just hasn't been common in Poland for long enough to have a demographic effect. Personally I think yes HFCS is a problem, but basically it's just massive consumption of surplus calories.
    - amanaplanacanal 5y ago
      I still can’t see how that would affect lab animals on a tightly controlled diet.
      - simonh 5y ago
        How what would affect them, massive consumption of excess calories or consumption of HFCS? And affect them how? I'm guessing it makes them fat, but as I said I know it's a problem. I've no idea what point you're trying to make.
        amanaplanacanal 5y ago
        Lab animals on a controlled diet are also gaining weight, without taking in excess calories. This would suggest that some environmental factor is causing the weight gain.
        pc86 5y ago
        Do you have a link to the study(ies) showing statistically significant disparate weight gain in otherwise identical lab animals?
        amanaplanacanal 5y ago
        I believe this has been discussed on HN before: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rspb.2010.1890 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/abs/10.1098/rspb.2010...
AlexandrB 5y ago
HFCS is "high" in fructose in relative terms but is actually quite similar to "normal" sugar (55% fructose vs 50% fructose). I think you're right that the real culprit is probably that sugar is being shoved into everything, including staples like bread.

dagurp 5y ago

Obesity is a problem in lots of places where the use of HFCS is uncommon. I would say the main issue is sedentary lifestyles and the high availability of cheap and unhealthy fast foods (in crazy portions).

scroot 5y ago
I think it's not about HFCS specifically, but rather the norm that was established by the availability of cheap (via a subsidized corn industry in the US) sugars that could be placed in anything. As far as I understand, HFCS does not have any biochemical effects that are different from other added sugars. It's more the economics and culture it created for food production.

graeme 5y ago

Monocausal thinking doesn’t suit a complex system. HFCS increases obesity. But you have increasing obesity in regions without it, and have people who eat it who aren’t obese. It’s neither necessary nor sufficient and your comment contributes nothing to evaluating the role of microplastics.

Retric 5y ago
Vast quantities of extra calories are needed for large segments of the population to be obese. That kind of surplus is very recent and absolutely required for an obesity epidemic. So we absolutely have the root cause, but not perhaps the only one.
- gizmo686 5y ago
  Not really. The difference between obese and healthy weight is about 40 pounds. At 3,500 calories per pound, that is only 140,000 surplus calories to become obese. Over a period of 5 years, that is about 77 calories a day, or roughly 1 egg. Obesity is not caused by a vast availability of calories. It is caused by a breakdown in the bodies ability to match caloric input with output. To be clear, vast amounts of added sugar seem to cause this system to breakdown, but the mechanism is more complicated than simple calories available in the environment.
  - matheusmoreira 5y ago
    > It is caused by a breakdown in the bodies ability to match caloric input with output. Not a breakdown. The human body is just way too efficient. Absurdly so. Humans can exercise for hours and not burn 1000 kcal but it takes mere minutes to ingest that many calories.
    - Retric 5y ago
      That depends on the exercise and your body eight. A 200lb guy can burn over 1,000 calories an hour during a heavy workout. Though few can keep that up for a full hour. That’s how you end up with serious athletes on 8-10,000 calorie diets.