A can or mug of diet soda every day? Think again. Diet soda may seem to be a healthier alternative to calorie-laden regular soda, but a new studyshows that people who regularly drink diet soft drinks may be putting their hearts at risk.
Those who drank diet soda daily were at risk of stroke, heart attack and death due to these conditions.
To analyze the relationship between both diet and regular soft drink consumption and heart disease, researchers studied the data of 2,564 participants in the Northern Manhattan Study. Working in collaboration with researchers at the Columbia University Medical Center, they studied how often each participant drank soft drinks, whether the beverages were diet or regular, and the number of strokes, heart attacks and heart-disease related deaths that occurred among the participants over a 10-year period.
After taking into account pre-existing conditions, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, the researchers found that people who drank diet soft drinks daily were 43 percent more likely to have had a stroke or heart attack, or died of heart disease, than those who did not drink diet soda.
The study also showed that those who drank less diet soda (who drank it between once a month and six times a week), as well as people who drank regular soft drinks, were not more likely to suffer vascular events.
The researchers noted that it remains unclear how soft drinks may affect a person’s risk of heart disease. “There is a need for further research before any conclusions can be drawn regarding the potential health consequences of diet soft drink consumption,” said study researcher Hannah Gardener, an epidemiologist at the University of Miami’s Miller School of Medicine.
Source: Journal NewsPhoto Credit : (americanhealthandbeauty.com)
