As a health and fitness columnist, I have discovered the sad reality that many people are susceptible to tacky weight loss trickery. Nowhere is this is more apparent than in the realm of diet and weight loss supplements -the industry is absolutely cluttered with them!

Despite the growing public awareness on this topic, the multi-billion dollar enterprise that is the diet industry isn’t backing down. Lately, we’ve seen the trend of multi-platform campaigns aiming to disprove or discredit the fact that weight loss supplements and ‘health’ foods are actually harmful and hindering to your overall weight loss success. Let’s address some of the claims about one of the most wrongfully defended ingredients in the vast majority of these supposed ‘health’ foods: High Fructose Corn Syrup.

At this point, it is likely that you’ve been advised to steer clear of this prominent component of processed foods, but there are actually big dollars being pumped into advertisements claiming the contrary. These are the campaigns that suggest that HFCS is all-natural, made from real corn or of similar nutritional benefit of everyday table sugar.

As I mentioned earlier, it’s become more apparent that people are susceptible to misleading claims, and this reality has affected and harmed the countless attempts of millions of people to lose weight. The truth is that, despite these outrageous claims, there is an unwavering correlation that one can draw between the occurrence of high fructose corn syrup and the rise of diabetes, heart disease and general obesity in the western world. This doesn’t bode well for future generations, let alone our own.

High Fructose Corn Syrup, in reality, is a food additive that affects practically every facet of the way our bodies utilize the energy we provide it in the form of food. A great way to demonstrate this is through a basic understanding of insulin’s role in our bodily processes; insulin is a regulation hormone that keeps our blood sugar level under a certain level of control. If your blood sugar rises too high, insulin drives those levels down to the point where you feel hungry, tired and full of cravings. Of course, when you’re in this state, the only thing that will relieve your symptoms is food that is high in sugar, but this only allows the unhealthy cycle to continue, making weight gain inevitable.

If you are looking to shed unwanted fat, the best first step you can possibly take is to avoid processed foods laden with additives like HFCS. Sugar, as we have seen, is the real problem; as such, it is crucial that you pay attention to the amount you ingest, to make sure that you are getting enough, but not too much. Supplements neither satisfy, or fulfill the needs and desires of the vast majority of people that use them. It’s absolutely essential that your weight loss journey is a success in all areas of your life - physically, mentally and emotionally.