Sugary Drinks Are Fueling a Global Epidemic of Chronic Illness, According to a New Study

Sugary drinks such as soda and juices have been a public health enemy for years, but new research suggests these sugar-sweetened beverages do more than provide empty calories: They could kill you.

That’s the main takeaway from a new study published on January 6 in the journal Nature Medicine. For the study, researchers from the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University analyzed data from the Global Dietary Database (GDD), a comprehensive survey of the world’s eating habits. The researchers focused on data from 1990 to 2020, examining findings from 450 additional studies involving 2.9 million individuals across 118 countries.

Unfortunately for sugary drink enthusiasts, the results reveal concerning trends. The study indicated that sugar-sweetened beverages were associated with an estimated 2.2 million cases of type 2 diabetes and 1.2 million cases of cardiovascular disease globally in 2020 alone. Additionally, an association was found between sugary drinks and 340,000 2020 deaths attributed to type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

Sugary drinks "cause more than 330,000 annual deaths from diabetes and cardiovascular disease,” the study’s senior author, Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, a cardiologist and director of the Food is Medicine Institute at Tufts University, told CNN.

The findings raise a lot of questions about the link between sugary drinks, diabetes, and heart disease. Here’s what a cardiologist and endocrinologist want people to know.

The link between sugary drinks, diabetes, and heart disease, explained

While the findings are shocking, they’re not surprising to doctors who treat these conditions. “It is well known that sugar-sweetened beverages greatly increase someone’s risk of developing diabetes and heart disease,” says Cheng-Han Chen, MD, an interventional cardiologist and medical director of the Structural Heart Program at MemorialCare Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills, California.

But there are a few things behind this link, according to Christoph Buettner, MD, PhD, chief of the division of endocrinology at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. “Sugary drinks are high in added sugars, which lead to rapid spikes in blood glucose levels,” he says. (Added sugars are sugars that are added to foods and drinks during processing.)

Those rapid spikes in blood glucose levels “are likely detrimental to health as they can cause inflammation and insulin resistance, a hallmark of type 2 diabetes,” he says.

Over time, having a lot of sugar can lead to weight gain, especially abdominal fat, which is “strongly associated” with diabetes and cardiovascular disease, he says. Sugar can also increase fat in the blood, lower HDL (“good”) cholesterol, and cause bodily inflammation — and all of those factors can raise the odds of developing heart disease, he says.

Related: Sugar Consumption Is Linked to a Higher Risk of Depression, New Study Finds

Buettner says that the amount of sugary drinks you have, how often you drink them, and the chemical makeup of the drinks all likely play a role in raising the risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. “The amount of sugar you ingest is a direct function of the concentration of the sugar in the drink and then the volume of the drink you gulp down,” he explains. “The chemical composition, including high-fructose corn syrup or other added sugars, may be even worse than ‘regular’ sugar and exacerbate metabolic effects by promoting fat accumulation in the liver.”

Sugary drinks also don’t contain fiber, protein, or other nutrients that help regulate blood sugar, he says. That allows them to be quickly absorbed and can lead to more blood sugar spikes. “Additionally, many sugary drinks contain additives, artificial flavors, and high doses of caffeine, which can also have health implications, such as increasing dehydration or masking fatigue, leading to overconsumption,” Buettner says.

How much sugar should you have a day?

It’s important to stress this: Your body does not need added sugar to function properly. However, it does need glucose, a sugar molecule, for energy. Your body typically gets glucose from breaking down carbohydrates, although it can also get glucose from proteins and fat. Still, added sugars are common, which is why it’s important to be aware of how much of them you have on a daily basis.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend that people limit added sugars to less than 10% of their total daily calories. That means having no more than 200 calories a day from added sugar in a 2,000-calorie diet, which translates to about 12 teaspoons.

Related: These 4 Ultra-Processed Foods Raise Your Diabetes Risk More Than Others, According to a New Study

But the American Heart Association (AHA) has more stringent guidelines, suggesting that added sugars make up no more than 6% of your daily calories. (That’s about six teaspoons of sugar a day for most women and nine teaspoons a day for most men.)

It’s important to point out that you’re not going to keel over if you have the occasional sugar-sweetened drink — these just shouldn’t be a regular thing for you. “Moderation is key,” Buettner says.

But Buettner recommends avoiding sugar-sweetened drinks as much as possible. “Opt for healthier alternatives like water, herbal teas, or drinks with no added sugars,” he says. “If craving something sweet, consider eating fruit, or naturally-flavored water or fresh fruit-infused beverages.”

Read the original article on Food & Wine