Daily Soft Drink consumption โขLinked to 29% Increase in Highโค Blood pressure โRisk,New Study Finds
MAASTRICHT,NETHERLANDS – A new study published in Clinical Nutrition revealsโ that drinking a โsingleโข glass of sugary soft drinks โdaily increases theโ risk of developing high blood pressure by nearly a third (29 percent). Researchers at maastricht UMC+ conducted theโข research, โฃcomparing the effects of fruitโฃ sugar from various sources.
The study initially analyzed data from โover 5,800 participants in a large-scale population study in South โขLimburg.Resultsโฃ indicatedโข that consumingโ 10 grams of fruit sugar daily – โคroughly the amount in โone โฃglass of โฃcola – elevates the risk of hypertension. This finding was reinforced by a secondary studyโฃ involving 21 healthy individuals,where โฃ20 gramsโค of fruit โsugar was administered four times in the form of an apple,pureed apple,apple juice,or dissolved in waterโ (mimicking soft drinks). The โsoft drink form consistently resultedโ in higher blood pressure readings compared to the other sources.
“You would think: fruitโข sugar is fruit sugar,” stated โlead researcher and internist-endocrinologist Martijn Brouwers. “Perhaps the connection is โฃbecause โsoft drink drinkers generally live unhealthier lives. That is why we wantedโ to โinvestigateโฃ the effect โof fruit sugar independently of lifestyle. We looked at whether it makes a difference in which form you ingest sugar: through soft drinks, โfruit or fruit juice.”
Researchersโ emphasize โฃthat the โค”packaging” of the sugar matters. Fruit contains fiber,antioxidants,and other โฃprotective โขcompounds that โคslow sugar absorption and mitigate harmful effects.
The โfindings build upon existing knowledge linking fruit sugar,โ particularly from sugaryโฃ drinks, to health issues โlike fatty liver diseaseโค and type โข2 diabetes.High โคblood pressure, the study notes, can ultimately lead to heart attack or stroke.
For aโ healthy individual with a baseline risk of 6 percent, โdaily soft drink consumption โincreases that risk to 8 percent, according to โคthe study.