I’ll be as succinct and as blunt as I can be: high fructose corn syrup gave me kidney stones.
For nearly ten years, I got kidney stones about once per year, on average. Kidney stones are probably the most painful thing I’ve ever experienced, and I tried an awful lot of things before arriving at this conclusion. Eliminating high fructose corn syrup from my diet has eliminated my kidney stones — for several years now.
I’m well aware that anecdotal evidence is not scientific, and I’m just an uncontrolled sample of one, but in my case, there’s no room for any doubt whatsoever. There’s evidence beyond myself, however, such as the here, here, and here.
This is prompted by this widely aired, misleading pack of lies:
High Fructose Corn Syrup Advertisement
I reject the assertion that it’s “all natural,” since it’s highly chemically processed, and I also reject the assertion that “like sugar, it’s fine in moderation.” It’s probably fine in moderation; I can probably slip and have some every now and then without having a kidney stone, but I don’t have to avoid either sugar or honey.
I also object to this sort of snarky advertising — it implies that everybody with an objection to high fructose corn syrup does so on the basis of unfounded rumor that they cannot articulate. And the answer? “It’s made from corn!”
Asbestos is all natural, for heaven’s sake, so it’s hardly a strong argument that something that’s natural must be good for you. It’s also somewhat misleading, because high fructose corn syrup certainly doesn’t appear anywhere in nature, it’s purely an artificial product.
It’s also a political ad, since it’s produced by the “Corn Refiners Association,” which is a group pushing its agenda in Congress. Shouldn’t it be properly labeled as a political ad?
Tobacco is just as natural a product. You can pretty much just mentally fill in “tobacco” for everything in the ad and you can see where I’m coming from.
I highly recommend avoiding corn syrup, particularly if you’ve ever had a kidney stone.
And to you, Corn Refiners Association, for shame. I sincerely hope your thinly-veiled political ads cause a massive backlash, and that consumers educate themselves about the real danger of your health-damaging products.
