system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
What's the difference between sugars found in vegetables/fruits and sugars found in refined grains/candy? Why is the latter worse for us?
gpt
Sucrose refined from beets or cane, refined high fructose corn syrup, and the starches or fructose found in vegetables and fruits are fairly similar with some slight differences. Sucrose is a dimer, effectively a 50/50 mixture of glucose, direct energy especially for the brain, and fructose which the body can metabolize to convert it into glucose. High fructose corn syrup typically contains from 45-55% fructose with the remaining being glucose. Additionally, starch is a long glucose chain that gets broken up by saliva.

First, this means that table sugar and HFCS are nearly identical with the only real difference being price and the price of foods that contain them. Foods made with HFCS are cheaper making them easier to obtain an overabundance of. Table sugar while more expensive than HFCS is still fairly cheap, making it easy to obtain too much.

Fruits and vegetables are on the otherhand more expensive per quantity of sugar. Additionally they have additional nutritional value in the form of fiber and other vitamins and minerals. They help you feel full for longer helping to prevent over consumption. Finally, the rate at which glucose is released into the bloodstream (measured by the glycemic index) is decreased due to the form of sugar and the presence of fiber. By prolonging this, the insulin response isn't as severe putting less strain on the pancreas.