What is the Difference Between High Fructose Corn Syrup and Real Cane Sugar Soft Drinks? Is One Really Better Than the Other?

Real cane sugar soft drinks have been making headlines for about a year now. The ingredient, commonly used in soft drinks until the 1980s, was replaced by a cheaper, sweeter option.

High fructose corn syrup.

In an effort to remove synthetic dyes from our food supply, a focus on a more protein and vegetable-rich diet, and a growing war on artificial sweeteners, our country is smack dab in the middle of a movement.

A Make America Healthy Again movement.

When it comes to the soda sugar war, is one option really better than the other? Sugar is sugar, after all.

Let’s see what the research says!

But first, what is the difference between the two ingredients?

What is Real Cane Sugar?

Cane sugar comes from, well, sugar cane. It is made by crystalizing the juices from the sugar cane plant. A commodity crop grown in the southern United States and in warm climates throughout the world.

Molecularly, real cane sugar, scientifically referred to as sucrose, includes 50% glucose molecules and 50% fructose molecules.

It is used in all kinds of products, alcohol and spirit productions, and has become more mainstream again as people are paying attention to the chemicals that are in our food.

What is High-Fructose Corn Syrup?

High-fructose corn syrup is made from, well, corn. Which sounds simple enough. But it isn’t.

Unlike its sugar counterpart, the amount of fructose present in high-fructose corn syrup is not as straightforward.

For example, HFCS 42, a version commonly used in processed foods and baked goods, contains 42% fructose. The remaining 58% are glucose molecules. Whereas HFCS 55, the version commonly used in soft drinks, contains 55% fructose.

How Much of a Difference Does It Make?

If we are specifically comparing apples to apples, in this case a soft drink made with real cane sugar versus one made with high-fructose corn syrup, how much does that 5% make?

With the majority of sweetened beverages (we are including fruit juices in this comparison) being mostly made with high-fructose corn syrup, it begs the question.

Is one sweetener better than the other if they both contain fructose?

Fortunately, we have some studies to reflect on. Most of which involve how these sugars are processed by the body.

Research has shown that fructose metabolizes in the liver differently than glucose. According to these studies, it is those differences that increase a person’s risk for obesity, Type 2 diabetes, and the complications that go along with those two conditions.

2021 Study Finds “No Significant Differences” Between Real Cane Sugar and High-Fructose Corn Syrup

One study, published in 2021 on Consuming Sucrose- or HFCS-sweetened Beverages Increases Hepatic Lipid and Decreases Insulin Sensitivity in Adults, found “no significant differences” between real cane sugar and high-fructose corn syrup when compared against aspartame-based soft drinks.

This study compared the liver’s reaction to beverages with high-fructose corn syrup, cane sugar, and aspartame as sweeteners.

The outcome was not what one may have expected, considering many previous studies suggest that high-fructose diets “promote metabolic dysfunction” than their sucrose counterparts.

Measuring hepatic liquid, Matsuda insulin sensitivity index IM ISI), and Predicted M ISI, the results were interesting. Scientists found that “consumption of both sucrose- and HFCS-SB induced detrimental changes in hepatic liquid, insulin sensitivity, and circulating lipids, lipoproteins, and uric acid in 2 weeks.”

This study essentially said, both were bad.

But that was just one study.

Other Studies Demonstrate the Specific Harm Done by High-Fructose Corn Syrup

A Princton study assessed the differences between rats fed high-fructose corn syrup as opposed to table sugar (real cane sugar). Differences in weight gain were primary observations.

Even with identical caloric consumption, rats given high-fructose corn syrup gained significantly more weight than those given table sugar.

Body fat increased. Belly fat increased, as did blood triglycerides.

Researchers suggest that real cane sugar is much better for the body because “excess fructose is being metabolized to produce fat, while glucose is largely being processed for energy or stored as a carbohydrate, called glycogen, in the liver and muscles.

Reducing Sugar, Both Real Cane Sugar and High-Fructose Corn Syrup, Are Better Options

With real cane sugar being the lesser of two evils, the solution is clear.

It won’t make people happy to hear it.

But it is clear.

Reducing all sugar intake, whether from real cane sugar or high-fructose corn syrup, is your best option for overall health.

The American Heart Association says that the average U.S. adult consumes around 17 teaspoons of added sugar per day.

Compared to the recommended daily allowance of two to three, that is significant.

When it comes to soft drinks, you not only have added sugar. You also have empty calories. Food that is not food. Which most people expect when it comes to soft drinks. I don’t think people expect to get nutrition out of a can of soda.

But trends on that front are changing.

Soft Drink Trends Are Changing

The beverage industry is responding to consumer demands. For the most part, consumers are demanding an bigger emphasis on health and wellness products.

You have likely seen a change on store shelves. The “diet” soft drink options have dramatically increased. You can get a diet drink. A zero-sugar drink. There are monk fruit sweetened beverages. The list goes on and on.

Now entering the game are prebiotic soft drinks. Probiotic soft drinks. Protein soft drinks.

I expect that the battle between real cane sugar and high-fructose corn syrup will ultimately be decided by the consumer.

Consumers make the biggest change by shaping industries with their pocketbooks. What consumers spend their money on will ultimately prevail.

So, when it comes down to which is better, real cane sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. Or should consumers be offered options that are bad for their health. Ultimately, unless major food laws change, consumer demand will determine the future of the soft drink and beverage industry.

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By: Heather Van Tassell (contributing writer, non-lawyer)