Robert Lustig

Robert H. Lustig is an American pediatric endocrinologist at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) where he is a professor of clinical pediatrics.^[1] He practices in the field of neuroendocrinology, with an emphasis on the regulation of energy balance by the central nervous system.^[2] He also has a special interest in childhood obesity.^[2]

Lustig came to public attention through his efforts to establish that fructose can have serious deleterious effects on human (especially children's) health if consumed in too large amounts.^[3] On May 26, 2009, he delivered a lecture called "Sugar: The Bitter Truth" which was posted on YouTube the following July and "went viral" with some 6.2 million viewings (as of February 16, 2016).^[3] In his lecture, Lustig calls fructose a "poison" and equates its metabolic effects with those of ethanol.^[3]

Biography

Lustig grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and attended Stuyvesant High School in Manhattan.^[4] He obtained a bachelor's degree from MIT (1976) and an M.D. degree from Cornell University Medical College (1980). He then spent six years as a research associate in neuroendocrinology at Rockefeller University. He completed a pediatric residency at St. Louis Children's Hospital and his clinical fellowship in pediatric endocrinology at UCSF where he joined the teaching staff in 1984.^[1][2] In 2013, Lustig received a Master of Studies in Law (MSL) degree from UC Hastings College of the Law.^[5]

Lustig has authored over 85 research articles and 45 book chapters. He is a former chairman of the Obesity Task Force of the Pediatric Endocrine Society, a member of the Obesity Task force of The Endocrine Society, and on the Steering Committee of the International Endocrine Alliance to Combat Obesity.^[1]

Controversies

Fructose controversy

Tappy and Mittendorfer cite a review^[6] by Dolan of the Burdock Group where average-estimated amounts of dietary fructose in a weight-maintaining diet did not appear to harm metabolic health. However, definitive studies are missing, as these trials involved fructose intake approaching 95% of average consumption, while toxicity of dietary fructose is only suspected for above-average consumption that overwhelms metabolic pathways.^[7][8] Some studies have shown that "the long-term consumption of diets high in fat and fructose is likely to lead to increased energy intake, weight gain, and obesity", and "the potential for weight gain from increased fructose consumption may only represent one aspect of its metabolic consequences".^[9] Meta-analysis studies have indicated that the clinical trials cited by Lustig, which were aimed at studying carbohydrate consumption, were of only short duration and variable quality, and that study subjects had only modest increases in body weight, thus precluding definitive conclusions.^[7][10]

One controversial issue surrounding fructose consumption is its role in blocking satiety. Lustig's research suggests that fructose consumption reduces satiety, leading to over-consumption. Trials that focus on isocaloric diets and on light fructose consumption do not address the issue of satiety and over-consumption.

In athletes requiring sugar to meet their caloric needs, fructose may enhance exercise performance by stimulating nutrient absorption and energy metabolism.^[11]

One scientific study reported that the combination of medical disorders known as metabolic syndrome (syndrome X) results mainly from excessive caloric intake and that fructose should not be singled out^[7] as a particular villain. In fact, small 'catalytic' doses of fructose may improve control of blood glucose in patients with diabetes.^[12][13] Further, fructose is a common, natural monosaccharide sugar present in sweet-tasting plant foods.^[12][14][15] Lustig argues that the characteristics of processed foods, namely the addition of sugar and the removal of dietary fibre, are two of the main culprits in a global obesity epidemic.^[16]

Sugar v. HFCS controversy

In 2013, Lustig was called upon as an expert witness on behalf of a plaintiff in Buffalo, New York, who claimed her obesity was the result of high-fructose corn syrup in foods. Forbes magazine outlined five legal flaws and cited Lustig for making inconsistent statements on sugar and HFCS: "Dr. Lustig’s past writings also inconveniently reflect his scientific opinion that HFCS 'and sucrose are, for all intents and purposes, biochemically and metabolically equivalent.'"^[17] The article goes on to vilify the plaintiff's case, but does not seek comment from the plaintiff apart from quotations from Lustig's book. Lustig has made this comparison other times previously. A New York Times Magazine article in 2009 noted Lustig's view that HFCS and sugar "are effectively identical in their biological effects." The author cited a lecture he attended five months earlier, where Lustig stated: "High-fructose corn syrup, sugar — no difference."^[18]

Personal

Lustig lives in San Francisco. He is married and has two daughters.^[19]

Publications

• Obesity Before Birth: Maternal and Prenatal Influences on the Offspring. Boston: Springer Science, 2010. ISBN 978-1441970336
• Fat Chance: Beating the Odds against Sugar, Processed Food, Obesity, and Disease. New York: Hudson Street Press, 2013. ISBN 978-1594631009

References

External links