High-fructose corn syrup and the obesity question
What it found
High-fructose corn syrup is not meaningfully different from table sugar, honey or fruit juice concentrates in what it is made of or how the body handles it.
The authors found no support for the idea that it is uniquely responsible for obesity.
What they found
Animal and lab studies
Pure fructose studies
Examples of pure fructose causing metabolic upset at high concentrations are plentiful, especially when it is the only carbohydrate source. There is no evidence that the common fructose-glucose sweeteners do the same.
Studies in people and animals
Obesity link
The popular hypothesis that high-fructose corn syrup is uniquely responsible for obesity is not supported in the United States or worldwide.
Other findings
What it is
High-fructose corn syrup is a liquid sweetener made of fructose and glucose, first sold to the food and drink industry in the 1970s. It is not meaningfully different in composition or metabolism from other fructose-glucose sweeteners like sucrose, honey and fruit juice concentrates.
Why it replaced sugar
Food makers took it up widely between the mid-1970s and mid-1990s, mainly as a replacement for sucrose. The reasons were sweetness comparable with sucrose, better stability and function, and ease of use.
How much is used
Use of high-fructose corn syrup in the United States is now nearly equal to sucrose use. Worldwide, more than 90% of the nutritive sweetener used is sucrose.
Extreme diets
Studies using extreme carbohydrate diets can be useful for probing biochemical pathways. They have no relevance to the human diet or to current consumption.
What the authors conclude
“I conclude that the HFCS-obesity hypothesis is supported neither in the United States nor worldwide.”
Also in their conclusions
- They conclude that the HFCS-obesity hypothesis is supported neither in the United States nor worldwide.
- They say studies using extreme carbohydrate diets have no relevance to the human diet or to current consumption.
How it was done
Common misunderstandings about high-fructose corn syrup have confused health professionals and the public. The author set out to review its history, composition, availability and characteristics, and to test the popular idea that it is uniquely behind obesity.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- This is a review of existing information, not a new experiment.
- It cannot prove what would happen if people changed how much high-fructose corn syrup or sugar they eat.
The paper
- Title
- Straight talk about high-fructose corn syrup: what it is and what it ain't
- Type
- ReviewThe authors read earlier studies and describe what they found. It isn’t a new study.
- Evidence
- Studies in people · animals · lab
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- White JS (2008). Straight talk about high-fructose corn syrup: what it is and what it ain't. The American journal of clinical nutrition. doi:10.3945/ajcn.2008.25825BPubMed 19064536DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error