Moved from the Budget Board: anyone else eliminating High Fructose Corn Syrup

[ReneeQ]

I agree with the Nature's Own Bread. BUT it's just that ONE type by Nature's Own, all the others DO have HFCS, so be careful. There is also a whole grain bagel by Pepperidge Farm that doesn't contain HFCS.

It takes FOREVER to read all the labels, so I've started finding one new thing a week in the store, as if I read every label on everything I'd never get out. So one week I found the bread, one week the bagels, etc. Now, when I get to the bagels and bread aisle, I know what to pick up without reading all the labels.

I figure I'll get it all figured out eventually.

 

[Disney@Heart]

trying to phase it out at my house too...wanted to offer up archer farms (target brand) for an alternative. Two or three of their types of bread use brown sugar and/or honey to sweeten. My favorites are the multigrain and buttermilk...good stuff. in my neck of the woods it runs about $2.79 per loaf which is comparable to the grocery brands.

Good luck to all of you...it's everywhere

 

[buzz5985]

In a nutrition class I was in a couple of years ago, my professor said that it was after companies started replacing sugar with high fructose corn syrup that the obesity rates began to skyrocket. This began in the late 1970s-early 80s. When I thought about it, I realized that she was right. It's involved but has to do with the way sucrose is digested in the body compared to the way fructose is digested.

But the way of life has changed since then. When I was a young child - in the early 70's - my parents would send me out of the house and tell me to come home when the street lights come on. So I was out running around for hours. Kids now adays don't get one quarter of the exercise that we did.

 

[tink2dw]

And in my opinion, that is why Amerians are buying 4000 square foot Homes!
They can't send the children "out to play" it is too dangerous. It use to be that homes were used to eat and sleep in. Now, everything is done inside the homes, eating, sleeping, and playing.

 

[tink2dw]

I read the side of my Diet Coke can and didn't see any sugars.

 

[grlpwrd]

Yup, living and eating this way for years.

HFCS is among the top worst things for us.

 

[camlace]

We eat Matthew's All Natural Bread. Not your squishy Wonder Bread but still pretty good!

http://www.matthewsallnatural.com/products

 

[luvmylittleboy2003]

Thought this was interesting, regarding honey:

http://www.thefitshack.com/2007/08/31/high-fructose-corn-syrup-and-honey-a-sneaky-relationship/

 

[mom2grace]

And you are right corn syrup is in EVERYTHING. Once you figure out all the names they use for it on the labels you will soon find that only one in 10 items doesn't have corn syrup.

What else is it called?

Some PF and SL bread is HFCS free, unless it's disguised!

I bought organic pancake syrup yesterday, it has 1.5 times the sugar than Hungry Jack (plus it was $10), I'm thinking about taking it back. DD doesn't like real maple syrup, I wonder why!

I haven't found anything with the USDA organic stamp that has HFCS in it, but that doesn't mean it's low in sugar!

 

[shortbun]

I'm trying really hard to strictly limit if not eliminate this from our diets. I've been working on partially and fully hydrogenated oils too. It's really hard. I'm finding myself making things from scratch like the pioneers, lol.

 

[NemoMOm]

I'm trying really hard to strictly limit if not eliminate this from our diets. I've been working on partially and fully hydrogenated oils too. It's really hard. I'm finding myself making things from scratch like the pioneers, lol.

I'm finding that making things fom scratch while time consuming is so much healthier. We have elim. preservatives and feel really good-no more heartburn.

 

[IluvKingLouis]

I'm cooking a lot more from scratch too.

I used to buy chocolate syrup (for making chocolate milk for dd4.5) but that stuff is full of HFCS. I did find a Nestle product in the Hispanic food section (called Abuellito) of Super Walmart that is made in Mexico and uses sugar (no HFCS). It was 9 cents/ounce which made it far cheaper then the US product!

I think I need to learn how to make homemade jams. I just can't stomach the taste(or price) of the all fruit jams, but the sweetened ones are full of HFCS.

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

I am trying, but like others have said, it is in EVERYTHING! I was looking at yogurt at Whole Foods yesterday and plan to try at least one container soon - hopefully it won't be gross!

My DS has inattentive ADD, and an article I read recently said the problem with HFCS is that the body doesn't recognize it as food and therefore can't figure out how to process it after it is ingested. Scary. It can't be good for him, so we are trying to move away from products that contain it.

 

[jeankeri]

Whole Circle makes ketchup that has no HFCS. Our local mom and pop carries it.
About the breads- always recheck the lable. I have been buying the Arnold Natural soft wheat. Before that it was another Arnold bread, but they changed the ingredient list and put HFCS in it!!

There is one type of Thomas english muffin- I believe it is honey wheat- that has no HFCS.
I'll have to re-check the eggos nutrigrain ingredient list- the last time I checked the whole product line has HFCS- is this new?
We have cut out HFCS and hydrogenated oils for 2 years. As to the lable checking- I have my boys do it. When we shop I tell them I'm happy to buy them cookies, chips, cereals etc if they do not contain these 2 ingredients. They check ALOT of labels, but can manage to find some. They can't believe how many products contain these ingredients- they're pretty psyched when the find 'treats' mom's willing to buy. BTW- the items also have to be on sale...I can only imagine how this will be relayed to their own kids one day..."you think you have it bad. If I wanted a cookie, I had to go through the whole store reading labels, and even if I found something my mom would only get it on sale or with a coupon....."
As for yogurt, my boys like Stoneyfield.

 

[KiKi Mouse]

This is one of the reasons my friend that has the corn allergy loves to travel to Europe. Their coke products don't have HFCS in them! They use just sugar and she can have those.

Kimya

I've had to go on an allergy elimination diet a few times and whenever I do I can't eat anything I test positive to for two weeks. Everytime that has included corn. So no corn syrup, corn starch, etc. Add to that the other stuff I couldn't eat for two weeks (like no dairy) and I lost weight easily each time.

 

[dkostel]

I think I need to learn how to make homemade jams. I just can't stomach the taste(or price) of the all fruit jams, but the sweetened ones are full of HFCS.

I like the Whole foods brand (365) strawberry jam. There are a couple of more expensive ones that are a little better tasting, but 365 is good, and of course hfc free. Although I'm sure nothing would beat homemade!

 

[NemoMOm]

I'm cooking a lot more from scratch too.

I used to buy chocolate syrup (for making chocolate milk for dd4.5) but that stuff is full of HFCS. I did find a Nestle product in the Hispanic food section (called Abuellito) of Super Walmart that is made in Mexico and uses sugar (no HFCS). It was 9 cents/ounce which made it far cheaper then the US product!

I think I need to learn how to make homemade jams. I just can't stomach the taste(or price) of the all fruit jams, but the sweetened ones are full of HFCS.

Jams are easy but full of sugar. Go to the store and buy a box of pectin, inside are instructions on how to make jam. You'll need supplies but simple and make great gifts!

 

[TwoOwls]

I've done this and feel really great.

I am very very lucky to have a Trader Joe's, Caribbean market, and various alternative routes to use. I am so glad to have found other DISers who are doing the same.

When I started this journey, I was shocked at so many things had HFCS in them.

 

[IluvKingLouis]

I like the Whole foods brand (365) strawberry jam. There are a couple of more expensive ones that are a little better tasting, but 365 is good, and of course hfc free. Although I'm sure nothing would beat homemade!

Thanks for the info!

I think I will also buy the pectin and experiment as well!

I'm so glad to know that there are so many people doing this.

Has anyone experienced a lot of weight loss due to eliminating HFCS?

 

[bumbershoot]

I read the side of my Diet Coke can and didn't see any sugars.

Well, of course not. Diet sodas are made with pure chemicals to sweeten them, chemicals with no (or less than one) calories in them.

Which means a whole different set of issues.


********

The day that DS attacked me physically at a festival, not 20 minutes after eating a lollipop, I finally realized that he simply could NOT have HFCS.

Last week at Disneyland, looking through the candy shop we got some WEIRD looks, as we went through the candy reading the ingredients. He ended up taking over, and "read" (he's 3, and I read at 2, so he MIGHT be reading but he doesn't do it on command, so we don't know if he's actually reading or just on the journey to reading) the labels..."'sugar, corn syrup', oh, we can't get that, it turns me into a dragon!"...over and over.

I'm going to have to go back and reread labels (not right now as I'm sick), but we've had good luck so far with Safeway's O Organics brand of many things.