The first episode tells the story of high-fructose corn syrup, the sweetener championed in the U.S. in the 1970s as a way to make use of the excess corn grown by farmers. Cheaper and sweeter than sugar, it soon found its way into almost all processed foods and soft drinks. Endocrinologist Robert Lustig was one of the first to recognize the dangers of high-fructose corn syrup, but his findings were discredited at the time.