Glucose/fructose, high glucose

[Guest Diane]

I am trying to slowly change our diet to eliminate tic-triggers and have been reading for weeks everyone's posts - many people talk about eliminating glucose/fructose, or high glucose. Can anyone explain this more clearly to me what it is exactly. I asked my husband (who followed a strict diet at one time) and he is baffled too, as he says fructose is simply fruit sugar (so why need avoid it?). So many things have glucose, or a combination glucose/fructose. My kids are big cereal eaters and I could not find one cereal at our regular food store (no kidding, not ONE!) that did not have glucose/fructose as a sweetener. However cereals from Health food section are sweetened with cane sugar - is this OK?

 

Also, my kids like granola bars - but there is even worse ingredients in prepared granola bars than cereals.

Am I misunderstanding what glucose/fructose is?

[Claire]

Some people have problems with glucose/fructose, others don't.

 

If a child has elevated yeast, sugar feeds the yeast, so you would want to minimize it. But if the cereal is not a sugary cereal, a little bit is still fine.

 

Fructose is a refined fruit sugar--like white bread vs wheat bread. It is so concentrated that it can set off insulin/yeast reactions just like sugar.

 

It may be that the Failsafe diet allows none at all--I will let those folks answer from that viewpoint. Many of us follow different plans so the answers will vary. Feingold is okay with some sugar.

 

On the other hand, artificial sweeteners and high fructose corn syrup are more of an issue for more people.

 

You need to find a diet that is liveable. I personally don't sweat a little of things. Though if your child is actually sensitive to it, then a little bit can be a problem. My son and I both can't have corn sugars at all, but fructose and glucose aren't an issue. But our reaction isn't tics (I don't even know what my reaction is!)

 

To me, standard granola bars are a joke in the pretense that they are healthier than other treats--purely marketing. I look at overall sugar content and other than holidays/birthdays, we keep it low.

 

Claire

[Chemar]

Hello Diane

 

unless there is a sensitivity, or a specialised diet (eg for candida elimination or one of the other specific elimination diets) then natural fructose and glucose are usually not a problem, and are indeed healthy

 

The worst offender is the very UNNATURAL High Fructose Corn Syrup, which has been found by many to be a major tic trigger.

[Guest Diane]

Thank you Claire and Chemar for explaining that a little more clearly, I certainly appreciate the input. I'm really trying here, with the tic-avoiding diet, and I'm noticing a difference so I want to keep it up!