Fructose Raises Heart Disease Risk

While the American Heart Association recommends that people consume only 5% of calories as added sugar, The Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2010 suggests an upper limit of 25% or less of daily calories consumed as added sugar.   A study completed by Kimber Stanhope, from University of California/Davis (California, USA), and colleagues suggests this latter threshold is too high. The team examined 48 adults, ages 18 to 40 years, and compared the effects of consuming 25% of one’s daily calorie requirement as glucose, fructose or high fructose corn syrup on risk factors for cardiovascular disease. They found that within two weeks, study participants consuming fructose or high fructose corn syrup, but not glucose, exhibited increased concentrations of LDL cholesterol, triglycerides and apolipoprotein-B (a protein which can lead to plaques that cause vascular disease).  The researchers urge that: “”Our findings demonstrate that several factors associated with an elevated risk for cardiovascular disease were increased in individuals consuming 25 percent of their calories as fructose or high fructose corn syrup, but consumption of glucose did not have this effect.”