have another pepsi?

[alocispepraluger102]

Daily soft drinks - even diet - linked to higher heart disease risk: study

By Sheryl Ubelacker

TORONTO (CP) - For those who drink diet pops in the belief that sugar-free beverages are healthier than regular soft drinks, new research suggests they should think again.

A huge U.S. study of middle-aged adults has found that drinking more than one soft drink a day - even a sugar-free diet brand - may be associated with an elevated risk for metabolic syndrome, a cluster of factors that boosts the chance of having a heart attack or stroke and developing diabetes.

"We found that one or more sodas per day increases your risk of new-onset metabolic syndrome by about 45 per cent, and it did not seem to matter if it was regular or diet," Dr. Ramachandran Vasan, senior investigator for the Framingham Heart Study, said Monday from Boston.

"That for me is striking."

Metabolic syndrome is associated with five specific health indicators: excess abdominal fat; high blood sugar; high triglycerides; low levels of the good cholesterol HDL; and high blood pressure.

"And other than high blood pressure, the other four . . . all were associated with drinking one or more sodas per day," said Vasan, a professor of medicine at Boston University.

Having metabolic syndrome is known to double the risk of heart attack and stroke, as well as boosting the risk of diabetes.

The study included nearly 9,000 observations of middle-aged men and women over four years at three different times. The study looked at how many 355-millilitre cans of cola or other soft drinks a participant consumed each day.

The researchers found that compared to those who drank less than one can per day, subjects who downed one or more soft drinks daily had a:

-31 per cent greater risk of becoming obese (with a body mass index of 30 or more).

-30 per cent increased risk of adding on belly fat.

-25 per cent higher risk of developing high blood triglycerides or high blood sugar.

-32 per cent higher risk of having low HDL levels.

But Vasan and his colleagues, whose study was published Monday in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, are unsure what it is about soft drinks that ratchets up the risk of metabolic syndrome.

"We really don't know," he said. "This soda consumption may be a marker for a particular dietary pattern or lifestyle. Individuals who drink one or more sodas per day tend to be people who have greater caloric intake. They tend to have more of saturated fats and trans fats in their diet, they tend to be more sedentary, they seem to have lower consumption of fibre."

"And we tried to adjust for all of these in our analysis . . . but it's very difficult to completely adjust away lifestyle."

Dr. David Jenkins, director of the Risk Factor Modification Centre at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto, said previous studies have suggested that diet pops did not have the same effects on weight and health as do naturally sweetened soft drinks.

"The unusual thing that needs comment is they (the study authors) say that the diet colas are the same as the calorically sweetened colas," said Jenkins. "So I think that is the piece that they've put into this puzzle . . . I think we need a lot more scrutiny of that."

Jenkins said he believes that high consumption of soft drinks likely goes along with eating a high-calorie diet.

"I think the disappointing thing is if you thought you were doing (yourself) a major service - which you always used to think - by taking diet drinks, this is not helping you," he said. "Before we were saying take the diet (drink) and you're OK. Now were saying: 'Watch it."'

The study also begs the question whether there is some ingredient in soft drinks - regular or diet - that may encourage metabolic syndrome.

But Dr. Arya Sharma, chair of cardiovascular obesity research at McMaster University, said there is nothing suggested by the authors of the study that would lead to that conclusion.

"One thing that they say and other people have said before is if you drink a lot of sweet things, then you are sort of conditioning yourself for that sweet taste," Sharma said Monday from Hamilton. "So people who drink diet pop may be eating other sweets, whether that comes in the form of dessert or other things, I don't know."

"It may be that people who are drinking diet pop - and we have this effect often with people who go on diets or when people go running or whatever - that you do a little bit of something that you think is good, and then you overcompensate by doing more of something that is bad."

"The idea could be because I'm drinking diet pap, I can afford to splurge on dessert."

Vasan said he cannot out-and-out recommend that people stop drinking soft drinks based on this study, because the findings are based on association, not clear cause and effect.

"The simple message is eat healthy, exercise regularly and everything should be done in moderation," he said. "If you're a regular soda drinker you should be aware that this study adds to the evidence that regular soda may be associated with metabolic consequences."

"If you're a diet soda drinker, stay tuned for additional research to confirm or refute these findings."

Copyright © 2007 Canadian Press

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[Uncle Skid]

I guess I'll just have a beer with lunch instead! :rsmile:

[Guest donald petersen]

g_d i pound 2 or 3 diet sodas a day. i guess it is time to shift my paradigm.

i wish i didn't hate water. i always think it smells bad.

[alocispepraluger102]

g_d i pound 2 or 3 diet sodas a day. i guess it is time to shift my paradigm.

i wish i didn't hate water. i always think it smells bad.

the doctors cited not drinking enough water, especially while exercising, which thickened the blood, as the probable cause for aloc's recent stroke(was drinking 1 or 2 glasses a week, maybe) and gallons of diet pepsi, and gallons of beer, as well.

for your good health d.p., please find some water you can get down, and several glasses a day, at least.

there are many fine filtering systems available.

[catesta]

Never been much of a soda person, even when I was a kid.

I do have an occasional root beer or ginger ale, but prefer water or iced tea.

I think I'm off the shit for good now.

[Chuck Nessa]

Might have one or two sodas a week. Go many weeks without. Water, coffee, juice, Scotch, and beer keep my innards working.

[Man with the Golden Arm]

M_n with the Golden Arm hardly ever does but he just had one ...

[catesta]

M_n with the Golden Arm hardly ever does but he just had one ...

O_e what?

[Soulstation1]

i drink about a gallon of soda a day

[Chuck Nessa]

i drink about a gallon of soda a day

Figures.

[.:.impossible]

I had a Nu Grape yesterday. It was fanta-stic.

In order: W_t_r, B__r, M_lk, 100% J__c_ (usually _ç__), C_ff__, T__.

Damn liquids have a lot of vowels in them!

answers: _a_ e_, _ee_, _i__, _ui_e, a_ai, _o__ee, _ea.

Edited July 24, 2007 by .:.impossible

[Jim Alfredson]

The idea of diet pop is really dumb. If you're really on a diet, don't drink pop, drink WATER! I barely drink pop myself. Maybe three or four times a month. I drink water constantly. I also love me lemonade and grape juice! I don't really drink alcohol either.

[7/4]

Shit Jim....I drink it for the caffeine.

[LAL]

Another reason to avoid soda, especially the "diet" variety?

[Jim Alfredson]

I try to avoid caffeine, too unless I'm driving home from a gig late a night and need something to help keep me awake. I don't drink coffee. I know too many people who can't even get going in the morning without a cup or two of coffee. Not for me.

[Jim R]

Can't help but wonder how many of you have had kidney stones. I hope none of you ever has, and never will. Once you've had one (especially the obstructive type), you'll likely start drinking a lot (80 - 100 oz. a day) of water like I do. Oh, and iced tea in large amounts is a bad idea (oxalic acid)... just thought I'd mention that too, because I think that's what got me into trouble.

I used to drink the occasional soda when I was young, but the diet variety never appealed to me in the least. Yecchhh.

[7/4]

I gave it up for a few years, only really use it in the morning. Any later than that and it keeps me up all night.

[JSngry]

I'll drink me some sody water by god, and I will enjoy it.

[Chuck Nessa]

I'll drink me some sody water by god, and I will enjoy it.

Jes' keep sayin' that son.

[catesta]

Oh, and iced tea in large amounts is a bad idea (oxalic acid)... just thought I'd mention that too, because I think that's what got me into trouble.

And now I'm off that shit too.

Never knew that about tea, I hope a few times a week is still safe. I guess I shouldn't be drinking it anyways because of the caffeine.

I'll have a real problem if the next study says Pellegrino is bad for you. I buy it by the case.

[Patrick]

So maybe diet sodas aren't the healthiest beverage. Is anyone really surprised? But notice that this study, like so many others, is simply reporting a correlation (and not necessarily a causation). Causation may be in the other direction, that is, individuals that are unhealthy for other reasons (like to eat large desserts and not exercise) tend to consume lots of diet soda. The story even suggests a couple of possibilities along these lines.

Setting aside water, is diet soda necessarily any worse to drink than other beverages (regular soda, juice, milk, coffee, beer, wine, spirits, etc)? Sure, some of those other things deliver nice things like vitamins, but they also deliver things like sugar, larger doses of caffeine, alcohol, etc. Maybe herbal tea is the non-water answer (though watch out for oxalic acid, I guess).

Me, I drink a fair amount of diet soda, usually caffeinated, but not as much as they use to dose laboratory rats...

[Jazzmoose]

Look, you drink soda (diet or otherwise), and you're taking in caffeine, a diuretic, and sodium, which requires more water to flush out, but you have less because you're drinking a diuretic. Can't be good for you...

[BERIGAN]

The idea of diet pop is really dumb. If you're really on a diet, don't drink pop, drink WATER! I barely drink pop myself. Maybe three or four times a month. I drink water constantly. I also love me lemonade and grape juice! I don't really drink alcohol either.

Diet Pop??? Man, you are soooo upper midwest! :rsmile:

I think a lot of people drink it because it doesnt have calories....I avoid non diet soda because of the amazing levels of sugar. Seriously, look at the grams of sugar in a soda(and how many servings are in that small bottle) and in ice cream per half cup. You would be better off having a scoop of ice cream instead of a soda every time you had a soda. And that couldn't be good for you. I have a diet drink once in awhile, but never addicted. It is easy for people to get hooked on the stuff though. And people go thru withdrawl just like with coffee. Nasty stuff.

Oh, if people don't like water, try filtering as mentioned above, or try every single kind of bottled water. My relatives here in L.A. buy arrowhead, and I really don't like it. Don't think I like spring water in general. It's coke water (Dasani) that tastes best to me for some reason. Pepsi water (Aquafina) is second.

[MoGrubb]

I drink Caffeine Free Classic Coke exclusively. Diet drinks taste like shit. Pepsi ain't made a good drink in 20 years; Pepsi is the only pop I drank during childhood.

[Jim Alfredson]

Yep, I got my wife off Diet Coke and she definitely went through withdrawl. She can't even stand the taste of it now. I'm very happy she's no longer drinking 3-4 cans of the stuff per day.