Fructose Not So Sweet for Blood Pressure, Kidneys

(EmaxHealth.com) — Fructose, including high fructose corn syrup, has been implicated in a number of health problems, including obesity and gout. Now researchers at the University of Colorado are highlighting the role of the sugar, noting evidence that it may play a role in high blood pressure and kidney disease.

Fructose is not so sweet when it comes to your health

People get fructose mainly in added dietary sugars, honey, and fruit, and from high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which is a mixture of fructose and glucose, typically in a 55-to-45 percent proportion. High fructose corn syrup is found in many processed and refined foods typical of a Western diet.

At the University of Colorado, scientists recently conducted an overview of clinical and experimental studies to identify the possible role of fructose in diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, and chronic kidney disease. They concluded that along with increasing support of a link between excessive intake of fructose and metabolic syndrome, they also found growing evidence that fructose may have a role in high blood pressure and kidney disease.

Richard J. Johnson, MD, of the Division of Renal Diseases and Hypertension at the University, noted that “excessive fructose intake could be viewed as an increasingly risky food and beverage additive.” He and his co-author on the study, Takahiko Nakagawa, MD, are concerned that doctors may not be advising patients who have chronic kidney disease to restrict added sugars containing fructose when offering them dietary advice.

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