A special Thanksgiving HFCS food of the week

What two side dishes are practically synonymous with Thanksgiving? Why, stuffing and cranberry sauce! There are tons of great stuffing and cranberry sauce recipes out there, but sometimes it's easier to turn to stuffing from a box and cranberry sauce from a can. Heck, cranberry sauce from a can is a tradition in itself for many families. So, let's take a look at these two Thanksgiving staples in a little more detail.

First, stuffing. I've talked in the past about how HFCS is ubiquitous in bread products, so it should come as no surprise that most commercial stuffing products contain HFCS. Take a look at the Stove Top Stuffing Mix for Chicken ingredient list:

Enriched Wheat Flour [Wheat Flour, Niacin, Iron, Thiamin Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), Folic Acid], High Fructose Corn Syrup, Onions (Dried), Salt, Contains Less than 2% of: Partially Hydrogenated Soybean and/or Cottonseed Oil, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Yeast, Cooked Chicken and Chicken Broth, Maltodextrin, Monosodium Glutamate, Parsley (Dried), Celery (Dried), Spice, Sugar, Corn Syrup (Dried), Caramel Color, Turmeric, Disodium Guanylate, Disodium Inosinate, with BHA, BHT, Citric Acid, and Propyl Gallate as Preservatives.

What a list! And there as the second ingredient is HFCS. It also contains partially hydrogenated soybean oil, another ingredient I'm striving to avoid now. As tasty as it is, best to just avoid the Stove Top.

Next, cranberry sauce. I personally have never cared for cranberry sauce, but I know lots of people who really prefer their cranberry sauce to come from a can. I guess the texture of the sauce from the can is hard to duplicate. If you buy canned cranberry sauce, though, beware! Ocean Spray Jellied Cranberry Sauce has a very simple ingredient list - Cranberries, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Water, Corn Syrup. Unfortunately, a main component of that list is HFCS.


So, what can you do? Well, there are options for cranberry sauce that do not contain HFCS. Most organic varieties - such as Grown Right Organic Jellied Cranberry Sauce - won't contain HFCS. Or, if you have the time, you can make your own. VeganYumYum has a very yummy looking recipe for homemade jellied cranberry sauce.


Finding a stuffing mix without HFCS on your grocery store shelf might be a little harder. Luckily there are tons of delicious stuffing recipes online. We started making a bread-free wild rice stuffing a couple of years ago when my daughter had a wheat intolerance (one that she has since outgrown, thank goodness). It's easy and delicious and has become a new family tradition for us - one that I don't mind sharing with you.

Wild Rice, Sausage, and Apple Stuffing

1 cup wild rice (I use a wild rice/brown rice/white rice mix from the store)
3 cups water (or however much water the rice package indicates for a cup of rice)
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 TBSP butter or olive oil
1 medium onion
2 cooking apples, peeled and chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
2 cloves of garlic
1 tsp ground thyme
pinch ground nutmeg
pepper to taste
1/2 lb turkey breakfast sausage links, casing removed

Combine wild rice, water, and 1/2 tsp salt in medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer until the rice is tender and just bursting, about 30 min. Saute the onion, apple, celery, garlic, thyme, nutmeg and remaining 1 tsp of salt and pepper. Cook until softened. Stir in sausage, breaking it up, and cook until done. Combine the rice and sausage mix.

Hope everyone has a wonderful, HFCS-free Thanksgiving! I'll be taking the rest of the week off from blogging to enjoy all that this week has to offer. See you next week!

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Friday links

Time to pass a little love to some of the links that I've enjoyed through the week.

Do you take a lot of different medications? Or maybe have a parent or loved one that does? Then read this post! Musings of a Distractible Mind talks about the dangers of overmedication and gives great pointers on how to avoid problems when taking multiple medicines.

I love reading about different food ingredients and how they work together in cooking. Accidental Hedonist dissects the Toll House cookie recipe and explains each ingredients roll in the final product. Good stuff!

Liz Rosembaum has a great article on a subject near and dear to my heart - boycotting the clean plate club. As a parent, I often find that the dance between making sure my kids try good healthy foods while still maintaining their ability to stop eating when they're full (an ability I have long since lost, unfortunately) can be a difficult one. Check out her post for good tips for how to get back that ability as an adult.

Last is this really interesting publication (ok, in a very geeky, food science kind of way) from the American Council on Science and Health on the natural carcinogens lurking in your Thanksgiving dinner. The article isn't bashing Thanksgiving dinner, but it is eye opening!

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Finding a HFCS-free jelly

Jelly was going to be the surprising HFCS food of the week, but then I thought that jelly with HFCS - maybe not so surprising. I mean, jelly is sugar based, so it isn't surprising that jelly manufacturers might want to use HFCS to save a little money. But what do you do if you're a mom and you or your kids want a PB&J? Or if you want a piece of toast with a little smear of jelly? Well, fortunately, there are HFCS-free jellies and jams out there!

Most of the jams and jellies on my grocery store's shelves are loaded with HFCS, but I have found some exceptions. Most of the organic jellies, jams, and preserves do not use HFCS, and more and more brands are offering an organic option. I've bought Tropical brand strawberry and peach preserves that are just fine and HFCS free. One of my favorite non-organic finds has been Smuckers Low-Sugar (No Artificial Sweetener) Preserves. With less sugar, the fruit flavor is a little more pronounced than in the full sugar preserves.

One flavor - one of my favorite flavors - that has been exceedingly hard to find in a HFCS-free jelly is concord grape. In fact, I haven't found a HFCS-free concord grape jelly. I'm a bit surprised by that as it seems to be the flavor synonymous with PB&J sandwiches. There is a decent substitute, though. Cascadian Farm Organics sells a concord grape fruit spread. The consistency is not the same as a jelly, but it has a good concord grape flavor.

Or if you're really lucky, you have a mom who likes to make her own jelly and is happy to share it. I get the most amazing jellies from my mother - including kudzu blossom jelly made from the flowers of the kudzu vine. It has a kind of deep red-purple color and tastes kind of like a combination of strawberry and grape.


And my favorite - scuppernong jelly. My mom gathers wild scuppernongs (a wild grape closely related to the more familiar muscadine grape) or else gladly takes some that someone else harvested and makes a divine jelly that is quite unlike concord grape jelly.


You can also make freezer jellies and jams that have an amazingly fresh taste. They are a thinner consistency but really preserve the true flavor of the fruit much better than the kind of jellies that you can store in your pantry. I don't have it in me to make regular jams and jellies, but I think that I might try my hand at some freezer jams next year to preserve some of the wonderful fresh fruit of summer. The taste really is amazing!

Last, do you know what the difference between jellies, jams, preserves, and fruit spreads is? Jelly is made from fruit juice and has no fruit bits in it. Jam is made from crushed fruit and fruit puree and is generally less stiff than jelly. Preserves are made with large fruit chunks in a syrup or jam. There you go. They're basically the same, just getting chunkier as you go from jelly to jam and preserves.

So, if you're looking for a HFCS-free jelly or jam, head to the organic or specialty jellies and jams. Or, if you're an adventurous cook, make them yourself!

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All about nutritional yeast

Have you heard of nutritional yeast? I hadn't until a couple of months ago when I reviewed a cookbook that used it as an ingredient. Now I find myself using it more and more. I love finding and learning about new foods, and thought I would share some of what I've learned about this odd ingredient with you.

So, what is nutritional yeast? Nutritional yeast is a deactivated form of the fungus (yes, yeast is a fungus) Saccharomyces cerevisiae that has been grown on a molasses-based medium. The molasses gives it more flavor than either brewer's or baker's yeast. The yeast is dried and sold as a powder or a flake. Nutritional yeast has a cheesy or nutty flavor - think cheesy umami flavor. It's often used by vegans for its cheesy flavor.


What's special about nutritional yeast? Nutritional yeast is loaded with protein (50% by weight!), B-vitamins, essential fatty acids, and folic acid. Some brands, but not all, are fortified with B-12. (The vitamin B-12 is produced by bacteria and then added to the yeast during the growing process. Not all companies do this, but Red Star apparently does.) The addition of B-12 makes nutritional yeast especially popular among vegans and vegetarians, as B-12 is an important nutrient that can be hard to get if you don't eat meat. It's also low in sodium, which is great when you're trying to impart a little extra flavor without loading up on sodium.

How do you use nutritional yeast? It's apparently a very popular topping for popcorn in some areas and because of its cheesy kind of flavor is often used in place of parmesan cheese in vegan diets. I've been sprinkling it onto vegetables like lima beans while I cook them. It adds a very subtle pleasant flavor to them. It could also be a salad topper. Its flavor is mild enough and pleasant enough that it really could be used on many different foods with good effect.

Where can you find nutritional yeast? You can order on-line or many health food stores sell it. Red Star is a very popular brand, and one of the brands that adds B-12 to the yeast. (If you're specifically consuming nutritional yeast for the B-12, read labels carefully! They aren't all fortified with B-12.) Nutritional yeast is sometimes sold as "savoury yeast flakes" or "vegetarian yeast."


Whatever you do, don't confuse nutritional yeast with brewer's yeast! I had two health food stores in my town tell me that they're the same thing - one even sold nutritional yeast (as vegetarian yeast) without knowing it. Brewer's yeast is a byproduct of the brewing industry and has a bitter flavor. It's the same deactivated yeast strain, but the growing medium is decidedly different resulting in decidedly different flavors.

Also don't use active, bread making yeast in place for nutritional yeast. Active yeasts are still alive and may continue to grow in your intestines resulting in you not getting all of the nutrients out of your food as you should.

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Wraps - my favorite lunch

I am crazy about homemade wrap sandwiches. I have a wrap almost every day for lunch. They're so easy, and if you choose the right ingredients, very healthy! So, I thought I'd do a quick post today and share one of my favorites.

Start with a tortilla - I like to use a whole wheat or multi-grain tortilla. Unlike bread, I have yet to see a tortilla with HFCS in it, so it's a pretty easy to acquire HFCS-free ingredient. Next, add a smear of hummus to your tortilla. Then top with your favorite ingredients - today I added sliced onion, bottled roasted red bell pepper, fresh basil, and feta cheese.


I came across this combo in Cooking Light. They also added sliced lemon chicken, but I never have lemon chicken on hand and like it just as well meatless. Roll up and enjoy! So quick and easy!

Other standbys for me are a smear of cream cheese topped with a smear of basil pesto, onion, tomato, and sliced turkey. Or a smear of cream cheese topped with a smear of salsa, sliced avocados, and onion. The combinations are endless!

So, for a quick and healthy lunch, grab some fresh ingredients and a tortilla and go crazy! And if you come up with some particularly tasty combos, let me know about them!

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And the winners are...

Time is up! Thanks to everyone that commented this week. Your comments are always appreciated, contest or not!
The winners of the two 1 year subscriptions to James Hubbards' My Family Doctor are.. MizFit and Amy from Super Healthy Kids! Congrats to both of you!

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Friday links

Time to send out some link love again!

Dr. Bryan Vartabedian writes about HFCS in a well-balanced post on his blog Parenting Solved. If you're a parent, you'll want to add his blog to your daily reading list!

Healthy Eating has a couple of posts well worth reading this week. First, is the nutritional information you get off the web reliable? Find out where to go for quality information. Second, Thanksgiving is coming up. How are you going to handle well-meaning moms and grandmas who want to fatten you up with a second helping?

For all the parents out there, I just discovered this blog - Parent Proved - and love it. Lots of food for thought - as well as lots of good information.

Last, A Life Less Sweet made the list for 100 Best Blogs for Mind, Body, and Soul. Can't wait to check out the others on the list!

Enjoy your weekend! And don't forget to comment for a chance at the My Family Doctor magazine subscription. Tomorrow is the last day for comments!

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Surprising HFCS food of the week

I hate to admit this, but one of my all time favorite comfort foods is Campbells Condensed Tomato Soup with some canned peas and corn and maybe some onion and saltine cracker mixed in. It's one of those meals that my mom would make me as a child (though she was as likely to use whatever leftover vegetable was in the fridge) that I tend to turn to on cold winter days for a quick meal or when I'm feeling a little low.


Well, no more. Campbell's Condensed Tomato Soup is our surprising HFCS-containing food of the week. Sigh. Besides being loaded with salt, many of the soups in the Campbells line contain HFCS. Not all, mind you, but many of them.

All is not lost, though! Campbell's Condensed Tomato Soup might contain HFCS, but there are many tomato soups that do not contain HFCS - even in the Campbell's brand. For example, Campbell's Select Harvest Garden Recipes Harvest Tomato with Basil (whew! That's a mouthful!) is HFCS free. Amy's Cream of Tomato Soup is also HFCS free (as are all of Amy's soups).

Sadly, even the healthier canned soups are generally still loaded with sodium. The Campbell's Select Harvest tomato soup mentioned above has 20% of the recommended daily value of sodium in half a can of soup! And Amy's is even worse with 29% of the RDV of sodium in half a can of soup. Ouch! If you have any gumption, you're better off making a big batch of soup and freezing some for later. (Look for soup recipes here later this fall and winter.) It's likely to be better for you and taste better too.

Still, if you're in need of a quick soup fix and are set on buying a can of soup, watch the ingredients list! Lots of soups out there contain HFCS. Fortunately, there are also lots of HFCS-free soup options too if you're willing to search just a little bit.

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Taking a break to remember

It's Veteran's Day today. Normally I would try to educate you on the many different HFCS-containing foods on your grocery store shelves, share a recipe, or educate myself by doing a nutrition post. But today is bigger than that. Today is a day to remember and honor all those who sacrificed and who fought to make our world a better place.


I've got a lot of veterans in my family - a grandfather who served in WWI (who I never met, but the stories I hear about him - wow!), uncles and a grandfather-in-law who served in major battles of WWII (and could barely talk about their experiences decades later because they were still so raw from the experience), a father who served on submarines during the Cold War, and more recently a nephew who fought in Iraq while still just a teen. This day means something to me, and I have to admit that when I sit down and think about this day and what it means, I get a little choked up.

This day originally marked the cessation of fighting between the Allied forces and Germany on November 11, 1918. President Wilson declared the day Armistice Day a year later. In 1954, President Eisenhower renamed the day Veteran's Day to honor all that have fought for our country. Several other countries celebrate Remembrance Day to honor their veterans.

For many people, today is a day without mail, a day to take advantage of sales in stores, or maybe a day off of work. And that's fine. But, take a moment to remember why we have this day. This day is important. And if you know a veteran, take a moment to let them know that you appreciate what they did for our country.

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A divine stuffed mushroom recipe

I have a love affair with stuffed mushrooms. There's just something about the earthy flavor of a mushroom paired with a delicious stuffing. I have one recipe that I turn to whenever I'm in the mood for stuffed mushrooms. I've had this recipe for about a decade now, and I never tire of it.


Before we get to the recipe, you know I've got to talk a little about mushrooms. Mushrooms are a type of fungus and are surprisingly chocked full of good stuff. Crimini mushrooms, the kind I like to use in the recipe below, are considered an excellent source of selenium, riboflavin, copper, niacin, vitamin B5, potassium and phosphorus. On top of that, it's considered a very good source of zinc, manganese, thiamin, and vitamin B6. Wow!

Let's take a closer look at two of the minerals that are so prevalent in mushrooms. First, selenium. Selenium is a trace mineral that acts as an antioxidant in the body. So, it's thought to help keep the level of free radicals in your body low - that's a good thing. Selenium also helps the body to synthesize antibodies and to transport ions across cell membranes. Our bodies need very little selenium to function properly, and selenium deficiency is rare.

Zinc is needed for a body's immune system to work properly. It plays a part in cell growth and division and also in wound healing. It's also vital for the senses of smell and taste. Zinc is a cofactor for over 100 enzymes in the body and is essential for protein synthesis, DNA and RNA maintenance, bone mineralization, thyroid function, blood clotting, and cognitive functions. While zinc deficiency is rare, because a main source of zinc is from meat, it is a concern for vegetarians. In that respect, mushrooms can be a much needed source of zinc for a vegetarian diet.

On to the recipe! I originally found this recipe in Martha Stewart's magazine. It is much the same as the original recipe with just a few small tweaks. Hope you enjoy!


Mushrooms with Goat Cheese Stuffing
3 slices bread (white or wheat - both work well)
4 green onions, white and green parts roughly chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
4 oz fresh goat cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro leaves (optional)
1 oz Monterey Jack cheese, finely grated
1 tsp salt
about 1 1/2 lbs of mushrooms, stems removed and caps cleaned

Pulse bread in a food processor until finely chopped. Transfer to a bowl. Place the green onions, red bell pepper, and goat cheese in the bowl of the food processor, and pulse until finely chopped and well combined. Add to bread crumbs and stir. Stir in the cilantro, Monterey Jack, and salt.

Heat oven to 400 F. Place mushroom caps on a large cookie sheet. Spoon goat cheese mix into eaps. Bake until mushroom caps are tender and filling is hot, about 20 min.

My husband said that I had to tell you to line the baking sheet with aluminum foil. The filling tends to drip down the sides of the mushrooms, and clean up is so much easier if the mushrooms sit on aluminum foil.

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A Life Less Sweet's first giveaway!

You might remember a couple of weeks ago I wrote a post about the Small Steps for Health contest that the magazine James Hubbards' My Family Doctor was holding. Well, thanks to everyone that voted, I won a couple of categories and was runner up in a couple of categories! To say thank you to all of my readers and to introduce others to this very informative magazine, I'm going to give away TWO of my subscriptions to two lucky readers of this blog!

All you have to do is comment! Each time you comment on this blog - whether on an old post or one of this week's posts - you will be entered into the contest to win a free subscription to the magazine. You have until 11:59 PM this Saturday, November 15 to comment and be entered into the contest. The subscription must be to a US address, and you must be willing to provide your name and address should you win in order to claim your subscription. The winners will be announced next Monday.

So, if you're new to this blog, take a look around and let me know what you think! And if you're a frequent visitor, keep those comments coming - you might get a magazine subscription out of it!

Thought I should add that SPAM comments will not be included in the giveaway! Stay away, spammers!

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Friday Link Love

Time to pass along a few links that I liked this week.

Hi, I'm Cathy, and I have trouble taking a compliment. Luckily, I'm in MizFit's 12 step thank-you therapy program and am making progress.

I love, love, love this next blog. It's just a mom living her life, but she tells about it in an oh-so witty and humorous way. Check out The Meanest Mom!

My husband and I love chai. And let me tell you, if you've only had coffee house chai before - kind of watered down and tasteless and all frothy the way that chai isn't meant to be - then you haven't really lived. It's been years and years since we've had really good chai, but all that has changed! Eating Well Anywhere posted the most divine chai recipe last week. I made it this week, and not only did it make my mouth most happy with its strong spice flavor, but it made my house smell amazing! My husband would have me make it just to have the house smell. Folks, this recipe is so worth the time!

Hope you enjoy! Come back next week - I'll tease you by saying that big things will be happening!

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Surprising HFCS food of the week

Planters has a new nut line out called NUTrician. We've really enjoyed the Heart Healthy Mix, which is a lower sodium (than regular nut mixes) mix with almonds, pistachios, pecans, hazelnuts and walnuts. Very tasty.

So, we didn't even think twice about picking up the Digestive Health Mix. It wasn't until we had eaten half the canister that we realized that the NUTrician Digestive Health Mix has HFCS in it. Curses! The Digestive Health Mix has almonds, dried cranberries and cherries, and granola. I would guess that the HFCS is hiding in the granola as granola is often a tricky thing to buy when you're HFCS free.
The rest of the Planters NUTrician products are free of HFCS for now.

If you're trying to live HFCS-free, remember that even products aimed toward healthy living can have it in them. We got a little complacent, and you got a post out of it!

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Another company drops HFCS!

Oroweat rocks! Oroweat is removing HFCS from its entire line of products. They realize that many of their customers are removing HFCS from their diet and want to keep their customer base happy.

Oroweat marketing director Dan Larson had this to say:

"We continuously monitor studies regarding HFCS and its health implications. Even though there are differing opinions among the experts, more and more of our consumers have told us they do not favor high fructose corn syrup. It was a significant project, and we're now pleased to provide our products without HFCS."

Apparently many of Oroweat's breads were HFCS-free before the switch, but you can now buy any Oroweat bread with confidence that it is HFCS free. YES!

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Prebiotics - good or bad?

One great thing about this blog is that through interacting with other people, I am learning so much. A commenter had a question about fructo-oligosaccharides - an ingredient she saw in one of her food products - and frankly I really didn't know anything about them. Hence this post! I love it when a question spurs me on to learn more about something - especially as I am relatively new to thinking about nutrition and what we put into our bodies in a more hardcore way. 


What is FOS?
So, what exactly are fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS), and what are they doing in our food and supplements? Let's start with the big word - oligosaccharides are short to medium chains of sugar molecules. Adding fructo to the word indicates that the chain is composed of several fructose molecules. So FOS is really just a bunch of fructose molecules connected to each other chemically. (Similarly, galacto-oligosaccharides are a bunch of galactose - or milk sugar - molecules strung together.)

Inulin, often used as a dietary fiber, is a longer chain of fructose molecules. Sometimes inulin is referred to as an FOS, but FOS are generally shorter chains of fructose, while inulin is a very long chain of fructose. Both FOS and inulin are found naturally in Jerusalem artichoke, burdock, chicory, leeks, onion, aspargus, bananas, wheat, leeks, and tomatoes. FOS can be synthesized by Aspergillus enzmatically acting on sucrose or by the degradation of inulin.

FOS actually behaves quite differently than a solitary fructose molecule. We don't have the right enzymes to digest FOS, so they pass through our stomachs and small intestines intact. The flora in our large intestines and colon, however, are able to feed on FOS. What's more, FOS is preferred by the good bacteria (such as the Bifidobacteria and Lactobacillus strains), though bad bacteria (like Klebsiella, Clostridium, and E. coli) are able to digest it on a limited basis. Because FOS serves as food for friendly bacteria (the kind you find in probiotics), it's considered to be a prebiotic. Get it? Prebiotics feed probiotics.

The Good
There are quite a few health benefits associated with FOS. Have you heard that a happy colon equals a happy body? Well, the health and happiness of your colon and intestines is largely dependent on its bacterial population. The human gastrointestinal tract has a complex ecosystem of hundreds of different types of bacteria. These bacteria have enormously important functions, including protection from infection from foreign bacteria and providing nutrients, including B-vitamins and short chain fatty acids.

The good bacteria in our body feed on FOS with a much greater efficiency than the bad bacteria in our body. In that way, FOS acts as a selective food for the good bacteria. The hope with a prebiotic like FOS is that the good bacteria will get the extra nourishment and thrive at the expense of the bad bacteria, and the bacterial population in your gut will then be mostly good bacteria.

FOS consumption has been associated with a lot of positive results. It's been shown to increase calcium and vitamin K absorption in the colon. It also boosts the bacterial populations' ability to synthesize B vitamins (like riboflaven, niacin, and pyridoxine). The level of short chain fatty acids in the colon is also higher with FOS consumption. All good things for colon health.

Because we can't digest FOS, it serves as a low-calorie dietary fiber, and we all know that we need to be consuming more dietary fiber! FOS is sweet - about half as sweet as table sugar - and is finding popularity as a low calorie sweetener, which is one reason why it's popping up in more and more foods.

The Bad
Of course, everything isn't all sunshine and roses with FOS (and inulin). There are concerns surrounding prebiotics. The biggest concern is that FOS also feeds the bad bacteria. If the microflora in a person's gut is out of balance - with more bad bacteria than good bacteria - this could be especially troubling.

Some people who consume FOS have problems with gas formation, bloating, abdominal pain, and (to a lesser extent) diarrhea. These problems have been attributed in part to actions by bad bacteria. While many people tolerate and are benefited by consumption of FOS, others simply cannot tolerate it and experience intestinal havoc when taking FOS or inulin.

Some claim that FOS and inulin can help those with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), but clinical studies simply do not support this. Not only does FOS not help alleviate IBS symptoms, some IBS sufferers experience a short term worsening of IBS symptoms when taking FOS or inulin.

What's the bottom line?
FOS consumption has a lot of potentially positive outcomes, but its interactions with bacteria in the gut are still not well understood. Each person's body chemistry is so different, and I suspect that the microflora population (good versus bad bacteria) in a person's colon determines to a large extent how effective - or detrimental - FOS is. For a colon in bacterial balance, FOS and inulin are probably beneficial. For a colon where the bad bacteria have an edge, FOS and inulin might not be such a good thing.

FOS is starting to pop up in a lot of different places. If you buy probiotics (aka good bacteria taken as a supplement), you might see FOS bundled in. Inulin is sold as a dietary fiber (Fiber Choice fiber supplement). And because both are sweet, they're starting to be used as sweeteners in foods too.

In the end, we've decided to be cautious with FOS and inulin. We have irritable bowel syndrome in our family and don't want to risk the detrimental effects that can potentially come along with FOS and inulin consumption. So, for now, we'll stick with natural sources of FOS and avoid FOS as a supplement.

Thanks so much for the question, Rachel! I meant for this post to appear much sooner, but life gets in the way sometimes. Keep those questions coming!

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