Sugary drinks linked to an increased risk of death

New US research has found that drinking a large amount of sugary drinks, such as soda and fruit juice, can increase the risk of dying from heart disease, as well as all other causes.

Carried out by researchers at Emory University, the study looked at 17 930 adults over the age of 45, none of whom had a self-reported history of heart disease, stroke or type 2 diabetes.

Participants were asked to complete a food frequency questionnaire to estimate their intake of sugary foods, such as desserts, candy, and those with added sugars or syrups, and sugary drinks, such as soda, fruit drinks, and fruit juices.

After following the participants for an average of six years, the researchers found that the higher the intake of sugary beverages, the higher the risk of death from heart disease or any other causes, including other cardiovascular conditions.

In particular, those in the top 25% of consumers of sugary beverages – drinking 24 ounces (710 ml) or more each day – had twice the risk of death from coronary heart disease compared to those in the lowest 25% of people who drank less than 1 ounce (30 ml) a day.

Picture: Thinkstock

The findings held true even after factors such as income, race, education, smoking history and physical activity, and known heart disease risk factors such as high blood pressure or body weight, had been taken into account.

However perhaps surprisingly, the team found no link between consuming sugary foods and increased risk of death, with the researchers suggesting that this may be due to differences in how sugary drinks and foods are processed by the body.

Sugary drinks contain few if any other nutrients, meaning the body is flooded with sugar that then need to be metabolised. However, sugary foods often contain other nutrients such as fats or proteins which slow down metabolism and could result in the different effects found in the study.

Although the team stressed that the results identify a trend, rather than cause and effect, study author Jean Welsh added: “We believe this study adds strong data to what already exists highlighting the importance of minimszing sugary beverages in our diet.”

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