Whether we want to admit it or not, everyone has a sweet tooth and a weakness for sweet things. Food manufacturers know that, so these days, liquid fructose is used almost everywhere in the food industry. This sweeter than sugar product has low production costs and the manufacturing process is simple, that is why you find them not only in beverages, snacks, bread, seasonings, and even canned food! But, what you need to know is that liquid fructose is a terrible sweetener. Here's why:

Both granulated sugar (or white sugar) and liquid fructose are common sweeteners. They both make things taste better but are made out of different components. Granulated sugar is usually extracted from sugar cane or sugar beet, while liquid fructose is extracted from corn, hence the other name for it - corn syrup.

"Aren't they both extracted from plants? What's the difference?"

Well, the structure of liquid fructose is much simpler than that of granulated sugar. This makes it way easier for our body to absorb and digest liquid fructose compared to sugar, and of course, natural unprocessed fructose which is slowly absorbed and processed by the body.

When consuming too much processed foods with liquid fructose, the quick absorption rate will cause great burden to the body. It'll also greatly increase the risk of hyperglycemia (high blood sugar), cardiovascular diseases, obesity, and diabetes.

To play it safe, avoid congesting more than 25g of liquid fructose content each day. That means avoiding carbonated drinks and processed foods as much as possible. If you can't, try methods like adding carbonated water or ice cubes to dilute the soft drinks so that you don't consume too much of it.

At the end of the day, of course it would be best to just consume natural sweeteners such as in fruits and vegetables. Since sugar is considered one of the essential energy sources of our body, cutting it entirely out of our diets would also be wrong. So, just keep a check on the amount you're eating everyday!