Corn Fed Up!
Posted by terrepruitt on March 25, 2010
I am saddened that it has come to this. I have started to make a list of products in our home that have High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) in them. And I am going to begin eliminating them from our house. (Yeah, sorry, Honey, if you are reading this, I meant to tell you before I posted, but . . . )
I am disgusted with the fact that it is in everything. I do not believe that it is “natural” or that it can be consumed in moderation. It is in too many of our everyday processed foods for it to be consumed in moderation.
I love Worcestershire Sauce. I use it in ALL of my marinades. I am in search of a brand that does not contain HFCS. If you know of one, please, let me know.
This will not be an easy process as some of the items, which I will discuss at a later date, are going to be really difficult for me to part with, but I am just fed up. There is WAY too much corn in America’s diet and I am done.
But in the spirit of fessing up, not only will this not be easy, it will not be an overnight thing. I need to wean us off some of these things. As I said in the e-mail/contact form to Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce is a STAPLE. So we will finish what we have which will give me some time to find something else to use.
I actually didn’t even know HFCS was in Worcestershire Sauce, but after my Nia class today I went to Jakes in Willow Glen and my friend and I were talking about how HFCS is in everything. I grabbed all the condiments off of the condiment area and we started reading the labels. Let me tell you I was soooooo disappointed. I never thought to look because it is just something I always buy. Now, when I buy something new, I look, but I have grown up with Worcestershire Sauce so I never questioned it. But now, I wonder, did it always have HFCS in it?
If you know of a Worcestershire Sauce without HFCS, please let me know. Thanks.
This is a copy of the what I sent Lea & Perrins. Pretty sure they don’t care. There website says, “We couldn’t make it better” Uh, yeah, you could, you could take out the HFCS!
Terre Pruitt's Blog 
niachick said
Check out Annie’s Naturals — google it. No HFCS in it. We use Annie’s organic stuff all the time…salad dressings, etc.
Jill
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terrepruitt said
Ha! Thanks, Dear. I knew someone would know and I wouldn’t have to research it!
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Melisa said
Could you make your own? http://www.grouprecipes.com/46696/emerils-homemade-worcestershire-sauce.html And, yeah, I hate it when I find out there’s something bad in things I love. I just realized that my favorite Indian snacks are full of iodized salt which I need to avoid 😦
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terrepruitt said
Yes, I have considered making my own. I looked up recipes before I posted, but honestly, I would not be able to deal with the 4 cans anchovy fillets. I actually have to NOT think about that even being in one of my favorite sauces. That grosses me out as bad as the HFCS—-yeah, I couldn’t deal with that.
I try not to eat a lot of processed foods, but I do use some and sauces is one.
Another commentor (NiaChick) pointed me in the direction of Annie’s Natruals.
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Celeste Parkhurst said
Ever consider making your own Worcestershire Sauce? There are a bunch of recioes online. I also found this article http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/18/magazine/18food-t-000.html which interestingly has the following statement in it, “Lea & Perrins’s American version leaves out the malt vinegar and, of course, substitutes high-fructose corn syrup for the sugar.” Maybe there is a european version of Lea & Perrins that you can order online that is HFCS free.
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terrepruitt said
Ha, someone else suggested that and yes, I have considered making my own. I looked up recipes before I posted, but honestly, I would not be able to deal with the 2 ounces anchovies, drained of oil. I actually have to NOT think about that even being in one of my favorite sauces. That grosses me out as bad as the HFCS—-yeah, I couldn’t deal with that.
The government here subsidizes corn that is one reason why it is in everything. A lot of manufacturers don’t include HFCS in the products they make abroad. That is why I asked (in my feedback to Lea & Perrin’s) if they made a version without HFCS. Only American soda (from what I was once told—I haven’t researched it) has HFCS in it. If Lea & Perrin’s does make a HFCS version, I might be able to order it online good idea.
Also, another commentor (my friend, NiaChick) pointed me in the direction of Annie’s Natruals.
Thank you for stopping by and commenting!
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Celeste Parkhurst said
I did just check some of the recipes and man does that sauce have a ton of ingredients. I didn’t even think of Annie’s Naturals, even though I buy their products. It’s pretty creepy how HFCS has invaded so many products. I’m lucky, shopping at the natural foods store helps me avoid it, but this is a good reminder to double check everything.
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terrepruitt said
I didn’t think of Annie’s either. Is this the same Annie’s that does the macaroni and cheese? I didn’t realize they made things other than macaroni and cheese.
Well, some will try to argue that HFCS is natural so, yeah, gotta be careful. I heard there was a store in Washington that is HFCS free.
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Celeste Parkhurst said
Looks like it is the same Annie’s, if you go to the Annie’s homegrown site you can find a link to their sister brand Annie’s naturals.
While researching awhile back on agave sweetener I found the following information (see the whole article here: http://www.living-foods.com/articles/agave.html ). Turns out agave sweetener is a lot like HFCS. And the reason both agave sweetener & HFCS is bad for you, turns out they can only be metabolized by your liver.
“Research suggests that fructose actually promotes disease more readily than glucose. This is because glucose is metabolized by every cell in the body, and fructose must be metabolized by the liver. 3 Tests on animals show that the livers of animals fed large amounts of fructose develop fatty deposits and cirrohosis of the liver. This is similar to the livers of alcoholics.”
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terrepruitt said
Thank you for the information on Annie’s. I just jumped to the conclusion that they were the same and I have been gone most of the day so I have not had a chance to look.
That is a long article and so I didn’t read it very carefully because it seems to be focusing more on the fact that agave nectar is not raw (raw (according to the article) being NOT heated over 118 degrees) even when the label states “raw”. But I just happened on a site that states that some companies make it by not heating above 118 degrees. So, like most things, it sounds like it depends upon the manufacturer. I am not participating in raw living so, I’m not going to go there any further.
With HFCS and Agave both being high in fructose and some studies saying that fructose might “promote disease more readily than glucose” it kind of goes back to the whole “in moderation” thing. But with HFCS in so many things it is really difficult to eat it in moderation. That and it being corn and corn being in so many other things.
Also, not sure, but it sounds like HFCS and agave are processed to different degrees, in the sense that the production of HFCS is many, many, steps whereas agave sounds like it is grown, cut, and cooked. So the sense I got from looking around was that agave retains more nutrients and it is processed less.
There is so much debate about nutrition it really is almost impossible to know what to do. The debate about HFCS will probably rage on. But even the promoters of it state that it is ok in moderation—and here is where I sound like a broken record—how can it be consumed in moderation (what is moderation of HFCS?) when it is in so many products? Since it is in so many products and it could be served to me when I am out at a restaurant, I feel the need to not purchase the products for my home that have it in it. That way I will be able to eliminate a portion of my consumption of it.
Furthermore about knowing what to do in regards to nutrition, one can listen to the news, do research, read the studies, and learn as much as possible, but I think it really depends on how one feels. I honestly think I feel better when I don’t eat a lot of processed foods.
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Celeste Parkhurst said
I have to say I agree with everything you’ve just said and feel pretty much the same way. I also think these issues and questions don’t get discussed enough, so I love that you brought up the issue.
It also makes me think it would be an interesting experiment to contact several companies to see if they would sell an American the version of their product that gets sold in other countries that HFCS free. If I do, I’ll have to blog about it.
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terrepruitt said
OMG. You should visit with my friends and I—all we ever talk about lately is this stuff. It seems like someone in our lives is always having a health issue so we always end up back at . . . . “its the American diet!”.
I REALLY think that there is a report out there to support ANYTHING you want to believe (not just in regards to food). Ya know what I mean? There are reports and studies saying HFCS is not “bad”, and reports saying it is “bad”. And on and on it goes. So people really have to take it upon themselves to decide and experiment with food and see how they feel when they eat certain foods. And go from there. EveryBODY is going to be different.
Let me know if you ever contact a company.
Thank you so much for the nice conversation today!
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