High fructose corn syrup, sucrose and fructose: metabolism and health effects
What it found
In people, high fructose corn syrup and sucrose gave virtually identical responses for glucose, insulin, leptin, ghrelin and appetite.
The authors say there is no unique link between high fructose corn syrup and obesity.
What they found
Studies in people
Similar to sucrose in people
Studies in normal weight and obese women found acute responses to high fructose corn syrup and sucrose were virtually identical for glucose, insulin, leptin, ghrelin and appetite. Studies in men and women found no difference in postprandial triglycerides after either sugar at 25% of energy.
Pure fructose vs glucose
When pure fructose and pure glucose were compared at 25% of energy, glucose caused higher spikes in blood glucose and insulin and greater increases in leptin than fructose. But when high fructose corn syrup was compared with sucrose at 30% of energy, these differences disappeared.
Heart disease risk factors
A trial in 352 overweight or obese people consuming high fructose corn syrup or sucrose at up to the 90th percentile for fructose found no changes in systolic or diastolic blood pressure or glucose. HDL cholesterol decreased by less than 1 mg/dL and triglycerides increased 10%, from 104.1 to 114.1 mg/dL, but remained within the normal range.
Metabolic syndrome factors
Research in the authors' laboratory found no increases in blood pressure, uric acid, waist circumference or triglycerides when high fructose corn syrup or sucrose was consumed at up to the 50th percentile for fructose. A later trial in 352 overweight or obese people at up to the 90th percentile confirmed these findings for blood pressure and waist circumference, though triglycerides rose by about 10%.
Studies in people and animals
Fatty liver and muscle
The authors' laboratory found no increase in liver fat or muscle fat at up to 30% of energy from high fructose corn syrup or sucrose over 10 weeks. Other researchers reported increased liver and muscle fat with much higher fructose levels, 2 to 3 times the 95th population consumption.
Other findings
No unique obesity link
High fructose corn syrup consumption in the United States decreased over the past decade while obesity increased or stayed the same in most groups. Worldwide, sucrose consumption is 9 times as much as high fructose corn syrup, and obesity and diabetes epidemics occur where little or no high fructose corn syrup is available.
What the authors conclude
“First, there is no unique relationship between HFCS and obesity.”
Also in their conclusions
- They conclude that there is no unique relationship between high fructose corn syrup and obesity.
- They state that there is broad scientific consensus that there are no significant metabolic or endocrine response differences or differences in health-related effects between high fructose corn syrup and sucrose.
- They advise that we must be very cautious when attributing adverse health consequences to the consumption of fructose, high fructose corn syrup or sucrose, particularly at normal population consumption levels, and call for more randomized controlled trials.
How it was done
The authors say controversy and confusion exist about fructose, sucrose and high fructose corn syrup, often fueled by speculation based on limited data or animal studies. They wanted to summarise current knowledge about metabolism, endocrine responses and potential health effects.
They reviewed studies comparing high fructose corn syrup with sucrose, and pure fructose with pure glucose, including their own trials in normal weight and obese women and men, and a trial in 352 overweight or obese people consuming high fructose corn syrup or sucrose at up to the 90th percentile population consumption level for fructose.
What it can’t tell you
- This is a review of many studies, not a single new experiment. It cannot prove cause and effect for any health outcome.
- Many of the studies compared pure fructose with pure glucose, which are rarely consumed alone in the human diet, so those results may not apply to how people actually eat.
- Some findings come from animal or cell studies, which cannot show what happens in people.
Who paid
- Conflicts
- Author disclosures: J. M. Rippe, consulting fees from ConAgra Foods, PepsiCo International, Kraft Foods, the Corn Refiners Association, and Weight Watchers International. T. J. Angelopoulos, no conflicts of interest.
- Authors work at
- University of Central Florida Medical School, USA
The paper
- Title
- Sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup, and fructose, their metabolism and potential health effects: what do we really know?
- 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
- Rippe JM, Angelopoulos TJ (2013). Sucrose, high-fructose corn syrup, and fructose, their metabolism and potential health effects: what do we really know?. Advances in nutrition (Bethesda, Md.). doi:10.3945/an.112.002824Free full textPubMed 23493540DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error