Number of Servings Required to Reach Institute of Medicine Added Sugars Threshold
Number of servings required to reach Institute of Medicine1 added sugars
threshold (≤ 25% of calories2)
There has been significant confusion about just how much high fructose corn syrup is contained in everyday foods. It is true that this highly versatile ingredient performs numerous functions besides sweetening that make it useful in many food preparations. But it does so in most cases using very small amounts. How small? Well, taking bran cereal as an example, Americans would need to eat 87 bowls in a single day to reach the recommended daily allowance of added sugars from high fructose corn syrup. For bread, they would need to eat 39 slices. For spaghetti sauce - 20 servings. For salad dressing - 50 servings. See the chart below.
These out-sized quantities show that many foods contain only small amounts of high fructose corn syrup. So why is high fructose corn syrup even used in these foods? In bran cereals, for instance, high fructose corn syrup helps retain moisture and makes bran cereal palatable. In spaghetti sauce, high fructose corn syrup reduces the acidity and tartness of cooked tomatoes. In baked goods, high fructose corn syrup offers excellent browning characteristics and provides fermentable sugars necessary for yeast-raised products. High fructose corn syrup also enhances fruit and spice flavors in yogurts, and marinades.
For information on other food items that contain high fructose corn syrup, please see the reference charts for breakfast, lunch and miscellaneous food items on the number of servings required to reach the Institute of Medicine added sugars threshold for a variety of foods. You may also be interested in the figures and resources used to calculate the number of servings noted in the reference chart.
A downloadable PDF of this information about the amount of HFCS in foods is available.
1 Trumbo P, Schlicker S, Yates AA, Poos M. Institute of Medicine. Dietary reference intakes for energy, carbohydrate, fiber, fat, fatty acids, cholesterol, protein and amino acids. J Am Diet Assoc 2002; 102: 1621-1630
2 Equals 500 kcal/day for 2000 kcal/day diet