Fructose, high-fructose corn syrup and blood fats in people and monkeys
What it found
Drinks sweetened with fructose or high-fructose corn syrup raised blood fats more than glucose drinks in people.
A year-long study in monkeys gave mixed results on weight gain.
What they found
Studies in people
Hormones after meals
In 12 normal-weight young women, fructose drinks led to lower blood sugar, insulin and leptin over 24 hours compared with glucose drinks. The hunger hormone ghrelin was less suppressed after meals with fructose. Overweight men and women showed the same pattern.
Blood fats rise
Fructose drinks raised blood fat levels after meals in both short and long studies in people. In one 10-week study in overweight women, daily fat exposure rose by 140%. Glucose drinks did not cause this rise.
HFCS and sucrose effects
A short study in men found that high-fructose corn syrup and sucrose raised blood fats after meals as much as pure fructose. Blood sugar, insulin and leptin responses fell between those of pure fructose and pure glucose.
Cholesterol particles
After 10 weeks, people drinking fructose had higher levels of a protein called apolipoprotein B. This suggests more small cholesterol particles in the blood, which are linked to artery disease. Glucose drinks did not cause this change.
Sugar intake in youth
Surveys show college students got over 20% of their daily energy from sweet drinks. Teenagers aged 13 drank enough sweet drinks to make up about 15% of their energy. Intake rose with age in studies following children for several years.
Animal and lab studies
Weight gain in monkeys
In a 12-month study, 8 monkeys given fructose gained weight at 3 and 6 months while 8 given glucose did not. By 12 months, weight gain was about the same in both groups. Changes in energy use seemed to matter more than food intake.
What the authors conclude
- They say fructose lowers insulin and leptin compared with glucose, which could lead to eating more or burning fewer calories over time.
- They note that high-fructose corn syrup and sucrose raise blood fats after meals just as much as pure fructose in short studies.
- The authors call for longer studies in different groups of people to find out what amounts of these sugars affect blood fats and blood sugar.
How it was done
The authors wanted to test whether fructose makes people take in more energy than they use, and whether it raises blood fats linked to heart disease. They also looked at how much added sugar people actually consume from sweet drinks.
They ran short and long studies in people comparing drinks sweetened with fructose, glucose, sucrose or high-fructose corn syrup. One short study had 12 normal-weight young women, and others included overweight men and women drinking sweetened beverages for up to 10 weeks. They also fed 16 adult male monkeys either fructose or glucose drinks for 12 months.
What it can’t tell you
- The monkey study lasted 12 months but had only 16 animals, so its mixed results cannot confirm what happens in people over time.
- Short studies in people can show changes in blood fats and hormones right after meals, but they cannot prove long-term weight gain or disease.
- Survey data on sweet drink intake can show patterns across ages but cannot prove that sugar causes health problems.
Who paid
- Funding
- Funded by NIDDK NIH HHS; NCCIH NIH HHS; NCRR NIH HHS; NHLBI NIH HHS (from the PubMed record).
- Conflicts
- The authors have no conflicts of interest.
- Authors work at
- University of California, USA
The paper
- Title
- Endocrine and metabolic effects of consuming beverages sweetened with fructose, glucose, sucrose, or high-fructose corn syrup
- 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
- Full text
- Cite
- Stanhope KL, Havel PJ (2008). Endocrine and metabolic effects of consuming beverages sweetened with fructose, glucose, sucrose, or high-fructose corn syrup. The American journal of clinical nutrition. doi:10.3945/ajcn.2008.25825DFree full textPubMed 19064538DOI
Summary written 1 Oct 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error