mercury rising

New data shows that mercury is present in high fructose corn syrup, which is the sweetener used for almost all of the products on the shelves of your neighborhood mega-mart.  The study was released through Environmental Health.

Mercury has been linked to learning disabilities in children and heart disease in adults. It is thought that the mercury is entering the sugary substitute during processing, thinking that it comes from the hydrochloric acid that is used to manufacture the product.  The toxin was detected in just under 50% of the total samples taken.

It is believed that, on average, Americans consume 12 teaspoons of HFCS, daily.  Although, it is expected that children ingest more than adults. 

There is no established safe dose for elemental mercury, the type discovered in corn syrup. But the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says an average-sized woman should limit her exposure to 5.5 micrograms a day of methylmercury, the kind found in fish. If that same woman regularly ate corn syrup contaminated at the highest level detected in the study—0.57 micrograms per gram—the researchers estimated that she could end up consuming an amount of mercury that is five times higher than the EPA‘s safe dose.

Given that HFCS is found in a very high percentage of products, it is safe to assume that we will be exposed to mercury, which was once thought to only be transferred through fish.  Now, it seems that anything we eat will do more harm than good.