Risk of diabetes increases with every fizzy drink
Drinking just ONE can of fizzy drink a day can increase your chances of developing Type 2 Diabetes according to new research from the US.
Scientists have found that calories from sugar, rather than any other food source, are much more likely to cause the condition. For every extra 150 calories from sugar per person on a daily basis, the prevalence of diabetes throughout the popluation rose by 1%.
However the same number of calories from a different food source only caused a 0.1% increase in the population’s diabetes rate.
After accounting for obesity and a large array of other factors, they found that increased sugar in a population’s food supply was linked to higher diabetes rates, independent of obesity rates.
They also found that the longer a population was exposed to excess sugar, the higher the rate of diabetes in that population. And when there was less exposure to sugar, the diabetes rate dropped regardless of consumption of other calories or rates of obesity.
Diet and zero calorie drinks
Another recent study confirmed that ‘diet’ fizzy drinks, those that are sweetened with artificial sweeteners, can increase the risk of diabetes by 60%.
In fact those women who drank the diet drinks were more likely to develop diabetes that those who drank the regular versions.
This is despite the fact that consumers consider diet or zero calories drinks a ‘healthy’ (I use the term advisedly!) option when choosing a soft drink!
Although it can be difficult to give up fizzy drinks – the sugar and artificial sweeteners can make they addictive – I urge you to cut them out of your diet permanently!
What’s the alternative?
If you want something fizzy you can add slices of lime/lemon/orange with mineral water.
Alternatively try drinking plain water with added lemon or lime slices to add flavour or pour cold water over a handful of herbs such as mint, rosemary or basil to make a ‘flavoured’ water.
