Yuck. As if I didn't think high fructose corn syrup was bad enough, now it's associated with a known neurotoxin. Yep, that stuff you've been trying to avoid in flu vaccines and certain fish: mercury.
Two studies have been all over the news and blogosphere. The first, published in Environmental Health Journal, showed detectable levels of mercury in 9 of 20 commercial samples of the sweetener. In the second study, the watchdog group Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (IATP) found mercury in one in three of 55 samples of popular foods. In a press release IATP’s David Wallinga, M.D., and a co-author in both studies said,
Mercury is toxic in all its forms. Given how much high fructose corn syrup is consumed by children, it could be a significant additional source of mercury never before considered. We are calling for immediate changes by industry and the FDA to help stop this avoidable mercury contamination of the food supply.
And what may surprise you is that pop and candy aren't even the biggest culprits. Most affected were salad dressings and condiments that contain HFCS.
What the heck is HFCS doing in my ketchup, anyhow? And mercury...really?
The source of the metal may be caustic soda and hydrochloric acid (of course! I never thought to look there!). Manufacturers of corn syrup use these to help convert corn kernels into the food additive. But some manufacturers still make the soda and acid by mixing a briny solution in electrified vats of mercury. The mercury ends up in the high fructose corn syrup.
The industry trade group Corn Refiners Association (CRA) released a statement on its Web site on Monday that said that the studies were false, as that technology is no longer used.
But the Chicago Tribune report disputes that,
The study said at least one maker of caustic soda that has used the mercury-based technology listed the corn syrup industry as a client.
The trade group, however, has thrown a sugar-crazed hissy fit and pointed to our old friend, the FDA. Audrae Erickson, president of the CRA, said in the statement,
They should know that high fructose corn syrup is safe. In 1983, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration formally listed high fructose corn syrup as safe for use in food and reaffirmed that decision in 1996. High fructose corn syrup contains no artificial or synthetic ingredients or color additives and meets FDA’s requirements for the use of the term 'natural'.
Mwah-ha-ha-ha! The FDA also considers bugs in my food "natural", but I'm not stocking up on Yoplait anytime soon, no matter how good the custardy yogurt tastes.
And let's not forget that "natural" ingredients don't necessarily make for a well-balanced diet. I can find corn in most boxed foods (thank you, Michael Pollan), sweet, drinks, and condiments, but just because it comes from the ground, it doesn't mean my personal food pyramid isn't going to topple over.
The other thing? An internal document at the FDA was recently released, showing that the agency wants to eliminate its recommendation that women and children limit their intake of fish of all types, even those larger types that do contain mercury. *But mercury is a known neurotoxin.*
So let's see: the FDA stands by the CRA, which has mercury in some of its products. It also doesn't care how much mercury-laden fish we grub on. Now I've gotta ask: Does the FDA produce mercury or something? What exactly is its stake in ignoring the dangers of this metal?
Now for the real problem. The amounts of mercury discovered ranged from 0.005 to 0.575 micrograms per gram of the syrup. According the the EHJ report,
Average daily consumption of high fructose corn syrup is about 50 grams per person in the United States.
Let's do the math: women of childbearing age have been recommended to limit their exposure to mercury to 5.5 micrograms a day.
But depending on your diet and avoidance of HFCS, you could be consuming anywhere from .25 micrograms to 28.75 micrograms of mercury per day.
Might want to double check that salad dressing before you dig in to your delicious tuna dinner.
Find a couple more blogs about this:
The IATP's pdf has some of the brands affected by this, though I'm sure we need a ton more testing! This document also has a ton of info on the hows and whys on making HFCS.
Amy at Crunchy Domestic Goddess, as always, has very in-depth coverage.
Amy Bell at Eco Child's Play urges us to eat "real" food.
Image: terren in Virginia on Flickr under a Creative Commons License.
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