Avoiding High Fructose Corn Syrup at WDW

[nineandcounting]

We have a trip planned, and would like to use the dining plan. I have a DH and three children who have severe reactions to consuming products containing HFCS. I have written to Disney, and received the standard response and form to complete and return.

Other than the obvious, sodas, breads and Dole Whip, does anyone have any experience with this, and could guide us as to other things to avoid? Thank you for your time.

 

[Pumbaa_]

What do you do at home and when you eat out?

The CS locations all have books with nutritional information. At TS, you can ask the server and if they are not sure, they will ask the chef or have him come out.

Have a great trip!

 

[nineandcounting]

We only eat out at places that do not use products containing HFCS (Jason's Deli is my favorite), or we read labels before ordering. Truth is, with a family our size, eating out is EXTREMELY limited. That's why it's such a big deal for us to get to eat at "real restaurants" at Disney.

I had no idea that there were books available at CS locations with ingredients listed...

 

[Colleen27]

I can't even imagine... Hopefully Disney will be able to offer some pixie dust and more definitive information than other restaurants can/will, because I've found it is virtually impossible to avoid while eating out (thankfully we don't have to, I just prefer to avoid it for nutritional reasons). Ketchup, other sauces, and desserts tend to be the biggest culprits, but anything that isn't made from scratch on site is suspect because so many manufacturers put that crap in everything.

 

[vitamingirl]

We have a trip planned, and would like to use the dining plan. I have a DH and three children who have severe reactions to consuming products containing HFCS. I have written to Disney, and received the standard response and form to complete and return.

Other than the obvious, sodas, breads and Dole Whip, does anyone have any experience with this, and could guide us as to other things to avoid? Thank you for your time.

Contact dining special allergy dept, they might be able to help you. Perhaps you can contact the chef of your resort hotel and they will be able to have safe foods for youtoo.

 

[Pumbaa_]

ok, i have to ask....with 11 people, where are you staying onsite?

 

[bavaria]

You may want to PM the poster bumbershoot; although she is a DL visitor she may have some advice.

I get really frustrated when even German food companies add that stuff to the products for the American market, so that I cannot buy 'my' products in America.

By the way, Trader Joes and ethnic markets are a good place to shop if you are trying to avoid it. TJ is German owned and a lot of their products are from countries where those additives are banned.

For WDW, avoid the 'coffee' drinks as they switched to a syrup for the 'lattes' etc which contains it. There are some coffee bars not run by WDW on site which will make a real drink for you, but you do have to hunt around and ask if they use just milk and espresso, or a syrup base.

 

[nineandcounting]

You may want to PM the poster bumbershoot; although she is a DL visitor she may have some advice.

Thank you for the advice! Yes, Trader Joe's is a place that I shop, along with a local butcher, local dairy, local grain mill, and the Farmer's Markets.

 

[nineandcounting]

Fortunately for us, two are infants - so two rooms at Pop Century - and it's only 10 My oldest won't be able to join us this year - he's in Bible College in Indiana and can't make it...

ok, i have to ask....with 11 people, where are you staying onsite?

 

[princessmom29]

have you had them allregy tested for an actual allergy to corn syrup, or are you going on strictly anecdotal evidence? Corn is one of the most non-allergenic foods out there. A true allergy to corn is extremely rare. That is why it is the primary ingredient in hypoallergenic baby formula. MY DD couldn't handle anything but corn based formulas for the first 9 months of her life. A much more likely culprit for a true allergy is the preservatives that often show up in foods with corn syrup, and usually don't in foods without it.

 

[nineandcounting]

It ISN'T a corn allergy. No problem with real corn syrup or any corn items. It's high fructose corn syrup, with all of it's nasty chemicals used to create it. Not sure if it's the acid, or something else, but it's bad. Within 15 minutes, headache, lethargy, and violent outbursts (depending upon the individual). Some of the children tolerate it ok, but I'm not happy about any of it...

have you had them allregy tested for an actual allergy to corn syrup, or are you going on strictly anecdotal evidence? Corn is one of the most non-allergenic foods out there. A true allergy to corn is extremely rare. That is why it is the primary ingredient in hypoallergenic baby formula. MY DD couldn't handle anything but corn based formulas for the first 9 months of her life. A much more likely culprit for a true allergy is the preservatives that often show up in foods with corn syrup, and usually don't in foods without it.

 

[princessmom29]

It ISN'T a corn allergy. No problem with real corn syrup or any corn items. It's high fructose corn syrup, with all of it's nasty chemicals used to create it. Not sure if it's the acid, or something else, but it's bad. Within 15 minutes, headache, lethargy, and violent outbursts (depending upon the individual). Some of the children tolerate it ok, but I'm not happy about any of it...

"nasty chemicals"??? Everything we consume on a daily basis is a chemical. Water is a chemical. I am a biochemist so things like that really bug me. All chemicals are not bad. In fact most are very beneficial and essential to life. While I agree that high fructose corn syrup is probably not the healthiest food around, there has never been any real scientific study done to prove that they types of reactions you are talking about are due to "chemicals". The going theory as far as real scientific research goes is that it is the amount of concentrated fructose rather than the process used to make it. Odds are that children that react badly would react badly to that much concentrated fructose coming form any source, not just the high fructose corn syrup. I have also never seen a study that shows that anything used in the manufacturing process is carried over in a large enough quantity to cause any sort of ill effect. The problem is the fact that fructose is much worse from a metabolic standpoint that other sugars we could consume.

It is still much more likely to be a food preservative however. Documented cases of this type of reaction being actually do to the corn syrup are few and far between so research is still limited.

 

[tiredsigh]

I don't think that this is a debate of why the OP doesn't want high fructrose corn syrup.

OP, I have severe food allergies that cause anaphylactic shock. I also have milder allergies that cause problems such as vomiting, hives, etc. My nephew is highly allergic to corn products. It is an allergy that is out there and becoming more prevalent.

Have you tried some of the food allergy forums or groups? You could possibly get some help there I hope you enjoy your trip!

 

[princessmom29]

I don't think that this is a debate of why the OP doesn't want high fructrose corn syrup.

OP, I have severe food allergies that cause anaphylactic shock. I also have milder allergies that cause problems such as vomiting, hives, etc. My nephew is highly allergic to corn products. It is an allergy that is out there and becoming more prevalent.

Have you tried some of the food allergy forums or groups? You could possibly get some help there I hope you enjoy your trip!

I am not trying to start a debate, but trying to help. If the corn syrup is not the problem, and it likely isn't based on most of the research I have seen, then it would be helpful to find out what is. Only trying to educate and inform, not argue.

 

[Missy1961]

"nasty chemicals"??? Everything we consume on a daily basis is a chemical. Water is a chemical. I am a biochemist so things like that really bug me. All chemicals are not bad. In fact most are very beneficial and essential to life. While I agree that high fructose corn syrup is probably not the healthiest food around, there has never been any real scientific study done to prove that they types of reactions you are talking about are due to "chemicals". The going theory as far as real scientific research goes is that it is the amount of concentrated fructose rather than the process used to make it. Odds are that children that react badly would react badly to that much concentrated fructose coming form any source, not just the high fructose corn syrup. I have also never seen a study that shows that anything used in the manufacturing process is carried over in a large enough quantity to cause any sort of ill effect. The problem is the fact that fructose is much worse from a metabolic standpoint that other sugars we could consume.

It is still much more likely to be a food preservative however. Documented cases of this type of reaction being actually do to the corn syrup are few and far between so research is still limited.

Thanks for the info.

 

[bavaria]

Isoglucose is severely restricted in food production in many countries. It has been associated with increase of symptoms in some inflammatory illnesses and is on the list of foods to avoid on anti-inflammation diets.

If avoiding it means that I can have some periods of lower pain, I will. I notice a direct relationship between what I eat and periods of flares, although it is obviously not the primary driving factor.

 

[princessmom29]

Isoglucose is severely restricted in food production in many countries. It has been associated with increase of symptoms in some inflammatory illnesses and is on the list of foods to avoid on anti-inflammation diets.

If avoiding it means that I can have some periods of lower pain, I will. I notice a direct relationship between what I eat and periods of flares, although it is obviously not the primary driving factor.

although porduced in a similar manner, isoglocouse and frutose are chemically different and act differently in the body. isoglucose is more likely to be problematic, especially to someone with inflamatory disease, because of alterations made to the normal structure chemically. It is a different compound than glucose found in nature. The fructose in HFCS is chemically identical to the fructose found in fruits, it is just much more highly concentrated.

 

[Pumbaa_]

this has veered off topic and this thread is closed

if you would like to continue the HFCS merits discussion, please do so on the Community Board - Princessmom, thanks for sharing the chemical information, truly interesting

9and counting you may want to head to the Disabilities Board for more information on dietary restrictions at Disney