Drinking two or more sugared beverages daily could not only bloat a woman’s waistline but also elevate the risk of heart disease and diabetes.
Researchers compared middle-aged and older women who drank two or more sugared beverages such as carbonated sodas or flavoured water with added sugar daily, to women who drank less.
Women in the first group were nearly four times as likely to develop high triglycerides, and were plausible to increase their waist sizes and develop impaired fasting glucose levels.
“Women who drank more than two sugar-sweetened drinks a day had increasing waist sizes, but weren’t necessarily gaining weight,” said Christina Shay, who led the study at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Centre.
“These women also developed high triglycerides, and women with normal blood glucose levels more frequently went from having a low risk to a high risk of developing diabetes over time,” added Shay, an Oklahoma statement said.
The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) included food frequency surveys in 4,166 African-American, Caucasian, Chinese-Americans and Hispanic adults from 45 to 84 years old. According to the study, the participants did not have cardiovascular disease in the beginning.
These findings were presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions this year.
