#nohfcs

I have been on the NO HFCS bandwagon for a while now. I learned about HFCS when I got back from living in Europe. In Europe, sugar is preferred. I became interested in why we use it so much here in the United States. Then, I became pregnant, and that was a game changer. I looked for the best products, and avoided the fake stuff. (I’m not going to lie, though, I did have some less than healthy cravings!)

How do I avoid HFCS? I read labels… Yes I’m the annoying person just standing at the supermarket reading what’s in my jam. Speaking of which… I am a huge fan of Bonne Maman, a delicious French jam that can now be found at many local supermarkets, no fake stuff, and absolutely delicious. You will never go back. (You’re welcome.)

Photo credit: bonnemaman.us

When something has HFCS I just put it back and look for an alternative. Another must-have item in my home is ketchup. Many people laugh at my obsession… but regular ketchup has HFCS. Thankfully, Heinz did come through and created “Simply Heinz.”

I think (and hope) that as more and more people reject HFCS, companies will be forced to lower the amount they put in their products. In January 2013, Bloomberg reported that HFCS consumption had “plummeted amid backlash.”

“Americans consumed less high-fructose corn syrup in 2011 than at any point since 1997, Bloomberg reported this week. The USDA estimates that the average American ate 131 calories worth of corn sweeteners a day this year, down 16 percent from 2007.”

As I explained in my earlier post, studies have shown that HFCS doesn’t satiate as real sugar does, so the body keeps consuming calories because it doesn’t get the cue that it is no longer hungry.

If you’r thinking about going HFCS free, aside from trying the products above (and this is my opinion, they aren’t paying me to tell you this!) you can also try buying foods at stores that are committed to offering better products, with less artificial stuff, like Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods.

The one issue I still struggle with going HFCS-free is the cost. Sometimes there is a huge price difference between the “conventional” food that has the cheap stuff and the “real” food. Hopefully, as less people consume HFCS and more food without it, the price of these products will do down.

For more tips and experiences on going HFCS-free, check out these other bloggers who took on the HFCS challenge:

Adrianna, aka Military Money Chica tells us "It’s Here, It’s There, It’s High Fructose Corn Syrup, It’s Everywhere"

Amanda, aka Mother of Ambition, shares what changes she made to eliminate HFCS from her family’s diet. (easy things you can do too!) "The No HFCS Challenge!"

George, aka Urban Jibaro from Sofrito for your Soul shares his experiences giving up ketchup during Labor Day Weekend! (Not so easy!!) "Trying not to be "Corny" About What I Eat"

Noelia, from Turbulent Times, tells us she thought it would be easy, but turns out, not so much due to accessibility to good quality food in her neighborhood. ”No HFCS Challenge”

Stephanie, from Football Food & Motherhood says "Going HFCS-free NO High Fructose Corn Syrup: Easier Than You Think."

When people say that having children will change your life forever, they're right. Becoming a parent will affect every decision you will make for the rest of your life. As parents, the outcomes of our choices, small and large, have the potential of having a lasting effect on the lives of our children. There's a very important choice we make every day that many parents trivialize, the nutrition of our kids.  Each and every thing we feed our kids affects their health and the future dietary choices they will make as adults. Ever since I became a mother I have been more cautious of the food I consume and feed my children. One of the many dietary decisions I've made was to avoid food containing high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). Despite what the food industry tries so hard to make us believe, there's nothing good or nutritious about HFCS. It is a highly processed sweetener made of corn and, because it is so inexpensive to produce, it has become a staple in American foods. HFCS can be found in anything from bread to yogurt and has been linked to the rising rates of obesity in the U.S. The hardest part of a HFCS free diet for me has been accessibility to good food. Until recently, my local grocery stores and supermarkets had very few healthy food options available for purchase. Thanks to gentrification, access to quality food in my neighborhood has improved immensely in the last few years. However, things are still far from ideal. As a result, I'm left to  purchasing groceries in Manhattan and carrying them home through a 40 minute ride on a packed L train. I'll admit, when I first heard of LadydeeLG's No High Fructose Corn Syrup Challenge, I thought it would be easy; heck it was something I already did on a daily basis. That was until I decided to make my kids pancakes and realized we were out of syrup. Who has pancakes without syrup? Here's the problem: the only type of syrup for sale at my local grocery stores is Aunt Jemima. Guess what's the main ingredient in Aunt Jemima's pancake syrup? You're right, HFCS. I love my kids and I care about their health so I had no other choice than to walk half a mile to the closest supermarket to buy maple syrup!

Photo Credit: The Cupcake Criminal

During my pregnancy I was very concerned about the types of foods I was eating, and I tried to not consume high fructose corn syrup. Now that I'm a mom, I continue avoiding HFCS at all costs. 

Here are some quick facts that made me decide to avoid products with HFCS: 

- HFCS does not occur naturally, despite recent ads that say it comes from “corn sugar.” 

- The body metabolizes HFCS differently, so a person might not feel satiated by foods that contain HFCS, so they tend to continue eating. => increasing caloric intake, leading to overweight/obese. 

- HFCS is cheaper than sugar- so food companies use it in many processed foods (including soda.)

- During the same time that the use of HFCS has increased, the obesity rate in the USA has also increased. While it may not be the SOLE cause of obesity, I believe it does play a role. 

Photo Credit: Unifiedlifestyle.com 

The Challenge 

I know that there are many people who know about HFCS and its effects on the body, but I also know some people don't.

I want to bring awareness to the widespread use of HFCS in packaged foods, and how easy/hard it is for individuals to go HFCS-free. Here are the awesome bloggers who are participating:

Participating bloggers:

Adrianna Domingos Lupher aka Military Money Chica

Amanda Mervine Edwards aka Mother of Ambition

Andres Jumanji aka El Sambo 

Diana Limongi aka ladydeeLG

George Torres from Sofrito for your Soul 

Migdalia Rivera aka Latina on a Mission

Noelia Rodriguez from Turbulent Times

Stephanie Barnhart from Football, Food and Motherhood 

I invite you to join us for THE #NOHFCS challenge: consume no products that have HFCs for two days, and blog about your experience. 

If you're a blogger and want to join, all you have to do is commit to going HFCS-free for two days, and blog about it any day between September 1st and September 4th, 2013. Please use hashtags: #NOHFCS and #SMBloggers 

If you're not a blogger and want to join in, no problem! Take on the challenge, keep notes and share them in the comments section OR share your experience with me via FB. If your diet is already HFCS free, tell me why you made that decision!  

Your comments might be posted on one of the participating blogs!