Living the Healthy Life: Are Sugary Drinks Worth the Increased Risk of Diabetes?

Introduction

Hello and welcome to my blog! I'm sure that health and well-being are subjects near and dear to most people's hearts. I'd like to use this blog to share ideas with others, what works and what doesn't. With the help of my cats, Maggie and Mingo, of course. They help me in the following ways: 1. by getting in the way; 2. by adding their comments to my writing; 3. by providing comfort with their purrs; and 4. by letting me know it's time to quit and play with them when they drag over their favorite toys and drop them in my lap.

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Sunday, April 28, 2013

Are Sugary Drinks Worth the Increased Risk of Diabetes?

Not only do drinks containing sugar contribute to obesity but have also been linked to a greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes. According to the latest research study (published in Diabetologia) which followed 28,500 people in nine European countries for 15 years, all it takes on average is one 12-ounce sugary soda a day to increase your risk for diabetes by 22%. This finding supports other U.S. data that show an association between sugar-containing drinks such as sodas and fruit juices and heart disease as well as diabetes.

The European study found this correlation between diabetes and soft drinks but not fruit juices. Even after the researchers factored in body mass index and total daily caloric intake, there remained an 18% increase in the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Now this does not prove that sugary drinks cause type 2 diabetes, since other factors could contribute to drinking more sugary drinks and to developing diabetes separately. That’s the trouble with correlational studies like this one. Just because an increase in variable A, such as drinking sodas, is connected with an increase in variable B, such as developing diabetes, does not necessarily mean that A causes B. For example and totally hypothetically, a person could have a genetic predisposition to favor drinks with sugar and also to develop a diabetic condition. Although the drinks and diabetes are linked, it’s not a simple cause-and-effect relationship, but rather could be caused by a third and still unknown factor.

But frankly I would rather play it safe and avoid any drinks containing much sugar, especially sodas. Plenty of acceptable non-sugar alternatives exist. Why take the chance?