Suspicions were high, of course. Between 1970 and 2005, the same period when our weight problems went berserk, so did the use of HFCS–which went up by 10,763%. I mean, that ‘coincidence’ could get anybody’s attention.

In fact, it got the attention of researchers. Now science backs up our suspicions.

First, some background. In 1994, scientists discovered leptin, an endocrine hormone created by–get this–our body fat. Leptin works as a fat tracker. It tells your brain when enough is enough, we get the message to stop eating and leptin goes about its metabolism work.

Or at least that’s the way God intended for things to go. When it works, nobody gets fat. When it doesn’t work, the brain never gets the message, leptin can’t do its job and people get fatter than ever.

What gums up the works? Man-made fructose, which comes without the enzymes, fiber and other natural attributes that nature provides. Our bodies don’t like synthetics, so like most synthetic products, fructose makes a mess of things. Let’s talk about synthetic, unnatural fructose such as high fructose corn syrup.

Fructose blows the whole leptin thing out of the water. Our bodies have no idea what to do with fructose. Every cell we own can metabolize sucrose–sugar–but not fructose. And since our cells can’t handle fructose, it gets dumped into the liver because that’s where all the bad stuff goes.

Well, the liver doesn’t know what to do with fructose either. Adding to the problem, the liver can process–not metabolize, but process–about nine grams of fructose a day, while the average can of high fructose corn syrup laden soda has more than five times that amount–48 grams. And since fructose is everywhere, in almost everything, the overload doesn’t stop with one can of soda.

So the liver’s drowning in fructose. Eventually, cometh the fatty liver, similar to an alcoholic, with all the problems that entails.

Immediately, however, the liver’s struggles cause two things: A raise in blood pressure and a related jump in our triglyceride level. Doctors noticed a relationship between those two and obesity long ago. Now we know how they drag leptin into the problem.

High triglycerides throw a blockade in front of the brain so leptin can’t get in to deliver the enough-is-enough message. That’s leptin resistance, the quick path to obesity. Our bodies produce more and more leptin, but it can’t deliver its message, so it’s useless.

But fructose doesn’t stop there.

Fructose messes with insulin, too. While sucrose gets the attention of insulin, fructose never does. Insulin, another endocrine hormone, makes sure sugar gets metabolized, but it can’t handle fructose.

Long story short, fructose leads to insulin resistance which leads to Type 2 diabetes. (And, yes, I know some doctors recommend fructose to their diabetic patients; they’re as wrong as they can be. Check the research.)

So there you have it. High fructose corn syrup creates chaos in your body and does a number on your health. The more you take in, the greater the mess.

Artificial sweeteners are at least as bad. As I said, the body doesn’t deal well with synthetics.

While sugar wins no prizes as a health food, it beats fructose and artificial sweeteners hands down because our bodies at least know what in the world to do with it.

So, fructose messes with two endocrine hormones–that much we know so far. What about the rest of them–thyroid, adrenal, etc.? Stay tuned.