It’s been deemed “fructophobia.” Critics like to point to sugar-sweetened beverages as unique contributors to the obesity epidemic claiming that sugar is a  “toxic,” “addictive” substance that makes us fat. As we know, this is simply not true and there are many facts grounded in science that disprove it.   As common sense shows and science proves, weight gain occurs when too many calories are consumed and too few are expended through physical activity.

This week, another study, published in Nutrition Research, confirmed several facts that yet again disprove the “fructophobics.”  This randomized, controlled study conducted over a 10 week period demonstrates that there is no difference between how sugar (sucrose) and high fructose corn syrup are metabolized by the body. They are nutritionally the same:  “there are no differences in the metabolic effects of HFCS and sucrose when compared at low, medium, and high levels within the range of normal human consumption of the two commonly used sweeteners.”

Furthermore, the study concludes it is “unlikely that a single food or food group [is] primarily causal” to weight gain and obesity, citing, in addition to their own research, recent literature reviews of clinical trials that found “even up to the 95th percentile” of sugar and HFCS consumers were “not associated with increased likelihood of obesity.”

Read the entire study here and let us know what you think on Twitter and Facebook.