High fructose corn syrup(HFCS)

What is HFCS?
  High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a corn sweetener found in numerous foods and beverages on the grocery store shelves. HFCS is composed of either 42% or 55% fructose, with the remaining sugars being glucose and higher saccharides.  As such, HFCS is extremely similar to regular table sugar (sucrose), which is a 50/50 blend of fructose and glucose.  There is very little pure fructose as a single sugar in the diet. It is usually found together with glucose
How Is HFCS Used?
 HFCS is a preferred sweetener by many food and beverage manufacturers because of its high quality characteristics, including stability, high osmotic pressure, or crystallization control.  For example, 42-HFCS is popular in canned fruits, condiments and other processed foods which need mild sweetness that won't mask natural flavors. Sweeter 55-HFCS has earned a commanding role in soft drinks, ice cream and frozen desserts. What’s the difference between fructose and HFCS?
High fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is made up of 42% or 55% fructose, 42-52% glucose (dextrose) and a few percent carbohydrate polymers.  Fructose also makes up roughly half the composition of common table sugar (sucrose).
 Fructose is a natural, simple sugar commonly found in fruits and honey. Interestingly, the amount of fructose in 2 apples or 2 ounces of honey is roughly the same as the amount of HFCS or sucrose in one can of soft drink 
 Since HFCS contains both fructose and glucose, it is important that experimental studies concerned with health effects of HFCS incorporate both sugars into the test regimen in equal proportions. Few reports purporting to link HFCS with health effects have done so; most seek to show an effect for exaggerated levels of fructose in isolation from glucose. Results from such studies cannot be extended to HFCS. What’s the difference between table sugar and HFCS? From the perspective of the human body, there is very little difference between regular table sugar (sucrose) and HFCS. Sucrose and HFCS contain nearly the same 1:1 ratio of sugars:· Sucrose is 50% fructose and 50% glucose · HFCS is either 42% or 55% fructose and 42-52% glucose (with minor amounts of carbohydrate polymers) Sucrose and HFCS differ by the bonding of their sugars:· Sucrose is a disaccharide, in which fructose and glucose are linked by chemical bond · Fructose and glucose are free and unbonded sugars in HFCS Sucrose and HFCS have the same caloric density of many carbohydrates: bothcontribute 4 kilocalories per gram. HFCS-55 was designed to have identicalsweetness to sucrose. The human body absorbs and metabolizes sucrose and HFCS identically, with one exception: the chemical bond linking glucose and fructose in sucrose must be hydrolyzed by an enzyme in the lining of the small intestine before absorption can occur. This enzymatic hydrolysis takes place very rapidly, so there is no practical difference in their subsequent absorption and metabolism. Although HFCS is far more common in the food supply now than in the early1970s, when it was first developed, there has been a largely concurrentdecrease in sucrose consumption as HFCS gradually replaced sucrose in manyfoods and beverages.  Sucrose and HFCS share a common composition, so the ratio of fructose-to-glucose in the diet has not changed. First and foremost, HFCS is safe.
In 1983, FDA listed HFCS as Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) for use in food. The agency considered that HFCS is as safe as sucrose, corn sugar, and corn syrup for use in food. 
 In 1988, FDA reaffirmed the safety of HFCS. In tha reaffirmation, FDA stated that the basis for listing HFCS as GRAS in 1983 was that ... "the saccharide composition (glucose to fructose ratio) of HFCS is approximately the same as that of honey, invert sugar and the disaccharide sucrose." 
The proposal on HFCS safety concluded:
The safety of the monosaccharides (i.e., glucose and fructose) in HFCS (containing equimolar amounts of glucose and fructose) is comparable to the safety of sugars in invert sugar (from sucrose).  It is also related to the safety of sucrose.  Consumption of all three sweeteners results in the absorption and metabolism of glucose and fructose in an approximately equimolar ratio.  Thus, consumption of HFCS (containing equimolar amounts of glucose and fructose) is not expected to alter the identity, level or ratio of monosaccharides that are available for absorption and metabolism from the food supply.
 In other words, the composition of HFCS is approximately the same as table sugar or honey.
In 1996, FDA published the final rule once again reaffirming HFCS as safe for use in food.   In that ruling, FDA repeated its statement on the similarity of HFCS to honey, invert sugar and sucrose.  These rulings apply to both HFCS 42 and 55.
High Fructose Corn Syrup and Soft Drinks
Although regular (non-diet) soft drinks in the U.S. today are sweetened with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) or sucrose, the great majority are sweetened with HFCS. HFCS, used in soft drinks, is a common liquid sweetener and is very similar to sucrose in sweetness. But as the name implies, it is made from corn. Sucrose, the familiar sweetener in your sugar bowl, comes from sugar cane or sugar beets. Sucrose is composed of two simple sugars, glucose and fructose in a ratio of 50% glucose and 50% fructose. The name high fructose corn syrup can be misleading; it is also made up of the two simple sugars glucose and fructose and differs only slightly from table sugar in the ratios of the two simple sugars. The HFCS used in soft drinks is called 42 HFCS or 55 HFCS, meaning it is 42 percent fructose or 55 percent fructose, with the remaining percentage being mainly glucose. Thus, HFCS essentially has the same composition as table sugar (sucrose).
Even though dietary glucose and fructose are processed differently, the source of these simple sugars, whether from sucrose or HFCS, does not matter to the body.
Although there have been studies in the media attempting to link HFCS with obesity, there is no scientific justification for this association. Obesity is caused by an imbalance in energy intake and energy output. Thus, too many calories and not enough exercise are the primary factors contributing to obesity. No one sweetener or single food can be blamed for causing this disease.
The key to achieving and maintaining a healthy lifestyle is to exercise or be physically active at least 30 minutes daily and to consume a variety of foods and beverages in moderation. All food and beverages, including soft drinks, fit in a balanced and healthy lifestyle.