Is this poor kid headed for later heart break?: Photo by Sean Dreilinger courtesy Flickr.A new study shows an association between drinking soda pop – including diet brands– and an increased risk of heart disease.

I’m not a big soft drink consumer, I like to have a glass once in a while with certain foods, but this seems a little far-fetched to me. However, check the statistics that came out of the report that appeared this week in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.

Of the nearly 9000 middle-aged men and women who participated in the study, those who said they drank one pop or more per day had:

• A 31 per cent greater chance of developing obesity;
• A 30 per cent increased risk for gaining inches around the waist;
• A 25 per cent chance of developing high blood sugar levels
• A 32 per cent greater chance of developing lower "good" cholesterol (HDL) levels.

The one-or-more-a–day consumers were compared to non-frequent consumers, and adjustments were made for total caloric intake, saturated and trans fat intake, dietary fiber consumption, physical activity and smoking.

Scientists involved with the study were puzzled why even diet soda drinkers came up with the same results.

"We were struck by the fact that it didn't matter whether it was a diet or regular soda that participants consumed, the association with increased risk was present," said Dr. Ramachandran Vasan, a professor of medicine at Boston University School of Medicine who participated in the study.

The researchers offered little explanation other than it could be that the sweetness of diet and regular soda may make a person desire even more sugar, or that diet soda drinkers may eat more at other times.

"Our study was observational, and so right now all we demonstrate is an association. We have not proven causality," said Dr. Ravi Dhingra, lead author of the study and an instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School.

Not surprisingly, the study has raised the hackles of the soft drink industry.

"This study doesn't prove any link between soft drinks and increased risk of heart disease. Its assertions defy the existing body of scientific evidence, as well as common sense. Even the researchers acknowledge that their study can't support a link," said Susan K. Neely, president of the American Beverage Association in a statement.

The ABA has a point, but each year soft drink companies produce 557 cans of soda pop for every person in the US, and last year, we drank an average of 814 8-ounce servings of soda, up 26 percent in the past two decades. You have to admit that’s a lot of sugar from carbonated beverages.

Hey, I have a better idea. Somebody should do a study about how much CO2 all those carbonated beverages (and let’s not forget beer) contribute to the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere each year. Just a thought

LINKS
CBC News story
Minneapolis Star Tribune story

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