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By Julie SteenhuysenMon Jul 23, 7:46 PM ET
Sodas -- even diet ones -- may be linked with increased risk factors for heart
disease and diabetes, U.S. researchers said on Monday.
They found adults who drink one or more sodas a day had about a 50 percent
higher risk of metabolic syndrome -- a cluster of risk factors such as
excessive fat around the waist, low levels of "good" cholesterol, high blood
pressure and other symptoms.
"When you have metabolic syndrome, your risk of developing heart disease or
stroke doubles. You also have a risk of developing diabetes," said Dr.
Ramachandran Vasan of Boston University School of Medicine, whose work appears
in the journal Circulation.
Prior studies have linked consumption of sugar-laden sodas with multiple risk
factors for heart disease, but Vasan and colleagues also found the link extends
to diet sodas.
The study included about 6,000 middle-aged men and women who were observed over
four years.
Those who drank one or more soft drinks a day had a 31 percent greater risk of
becoming obese.
They had a 30 percent increased risk of developing increased waist
circumference -- which has been shown to predict heart disease risk better than
weight alone.
They also had a 25 percent increased risk of developing high blood
triglycerides as well as high blood sugar, and a 32 percent higher risk of
having low high-density lipoprotein or "good" cholesterol levels.
The researchers then analyzed a smaller sample of participants on whom data on
regular and diet soft drink consumption was available. Those who drank one or
more diet or regular sodas per day had a 50 to 60 percent increased risk for
developing metabolic syndrome.
INTRIGUING NEW ANGLE
"The part about diet soda is more intriguing," Vasan said.
He said people who drink soda, whether diet or sugar-sweetened, tend to have
similar dietary patterns.
"On average, soda drinkers tend to eat more calories, consume more saturated
fat and trans fat, eat less fiber, exercise less and be more sedentary," Vasan
said in a telephone interview.
The researchers adjusted for those factors and still observed a significant
link between soft drink consumption and the risk of developing metabolic
syndrome.
Vasan said there are several theories about how diet sodas could increase a
person's metabolic risk.
"One possibility is that diet soda is sweet. Maybe drinking something sweet
conditions you in such a way that you develop a preference for sweet things,"
he said.
"Also, diet soda is a liquid. When you take liquids at a meal, they don't
satiate you as much (as solids)," he said.
The caramel coloring of some sodas also may play a role. He said caramel
coloring in animal experiments was associated with tissue inflammation. "These
are all theories which we have not studied," Vasan said.
He said while the study showed an association between soda consumption and
having a higher risk of metabolic syndrome, it does not prove soda was the
cause.
"Before people change their habits, we would like to see these data replicated
in other studies, he said.
"We'd also like nutrition scientists to conduct additional research to help us
understand why diet soda is associated with metabolic risk."
The American Heart Association, which publishes Circulation, said people should
understand that the study did not demonstrate that diet sodas cause heart
disease and said it can be better to have a diet drink than a full-calorie
soda.
"The American Heart Association supports dietary patterns that include
low-calorie beverages like water, diet soft drinks, and fat-free or low-fat
milk as better choices than full calorie soft drinks," the group said.
The American Beverage Association said in a statement e-mailed to Reuters it
appreciated the heart group made clear "the report ... does not show that soft
drinks cause an increased risk of heart disease and it recognizes that diet
soft drinks are a good option for those looking to cut calories in their
beverages."