March 22, 2024
Source/Image licensed from Ingram Image
You can't exercise your way around bad nutritional habits. Drinking a soda each day increases the risk of cardiovascular disease – regardless of physical activity levels. Even if people meet U.S. exercise guidelines, their risk for heart disease jumps 21% if they drink at least two sugary sweetened beverages a day.
How would you like to wipe away the benefits of the 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise you logged this week? Not a very attractive proposition, but that's what you'd be doing if you drank just two 12-ounce cans of soda each day. Yes, all that hard work goes out the window by drinking a couple sugar-sweetened beverages, whether they're sodas, fruit juice or an energy drinks. On top of that, soda can increase your risk of heart disease. How can this be?
A study published in January found that even when people met the U.S. exercise guidelines for 150 minutes per week of moderate aerobic activity (like brisk walking), they could not fully counter the negative effects of sugar-sweetened beverages. The 30-year study measured cardiovascular risk, the leading cause of death in the world, in about 100,000 adults, including men and women. The study sheds new light on advertising that often links these beverages with physical activity, implying no negative effects from consumption.
The researchers, from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Universite' Laval in Canada, reported an 18% increased risk of cardiovascular disease when study participants had just one sugary drink per day regardless of their levels of exercise. When daily consumption increased to at least two drinks per day, that risk jumped to 21% among participants that met U.S. exercise guidelines when compared to those who rarely or never drank sugar-sweetened beverages. The researchers noted that physical activity can have a positive impact and cut cardiovascular risk associated with sugar-sweetened beverages by half, but it will not totally cancel out the risk.
Why are these new finding so significant? Though the experts report that heavy consumption (500 calories or more every day) of sugary beverages in the U.S. is declining, it remains significant. Overall consumption exceeds recommended levels. About 60% of children and 50% of adults drink at least one sugary beverage per day.
According to the CDC, sugary-sweetened beverages are the leading sources of added sugars in the American diet. Besides cardiovascular disease, consumption is associated with weight gain, obesity, type 2 diabetes and kidney disease, not to mention tooth decay, cavities and gout. Looked at from a geographic lens, adults in the Northeast are the most likely to drink sugary drinks, with 68% downing at least one a day.
With so many products on the market, it is important to differentiate sugar-sweetened beverages from those categorized as low-calorie sweeteners, which experts define as sweeteners with few to no calories and a greater intensity per gram than those with calories. These are drinks with artificial sweeteners like Aspartame and Sucralose, and plant extracts such as steviol glycosides are often marketed as "sugar-free" or "diet."
Scientists report that the health effects of these sweeteners are inconclusive, suggesting that more research is needed. For adults who drink a high volume of sugary drinks, researchers believe that low-calorie sweeteners can be a temporary replacement to lower the number of sugary drinks these people consume.
Though half of all adults drink at least one sugar-sweetened beverage a day, Healthy Food America tells us that "children, adolescents, and young adults are by far the heaviest consumers of sugary drinks." Older adults are less likely to consume them in high amounts. Among men ages 40-59 years old, 50% consume at least one sugary drink per day compared to 65% of men age 20-39 years. This metric drops to 43% in men 60 and over.
Research shows that among people over 40, there is little difference between men (6.9%) and women (6.1%) when measuring the amount of daily caloric intake from sugar-sweetened beverages. And the CDC reports that average total calories from sugar-sweetened drinks decreases with age in both men and women.
The American Heart Association highlights research for avoiding sugary drinks that includes the added benefit of cutting calories from your solid food intake. Research shows that drinking calories in the form of sugary-sweetened beverages can reduce your satisfaction from calories in food. This can lead to eating more calories than you need. By limiting your intake from sugary drinks, you can reduce the likelihood that you'll overeat. Not a bad one-two punch for your health. The AHA also offers some practical tips to help steer you away from the excess sugar in these drinks:
• Read nutrition labels and check ingredients. Deceiving labels can make drinks loaded with added sugars seem healthy. Before downing an energy drink read the label carefully. Ingredients like sucrose, glucose, fructose, maltose, dextrose, syrups, concentrated fruit juice, agave and honey represent added calories. A single container may hold more than one serving.
• Start slow. Much like the expert advice associated with many exercise and diet programs, if sugary drinks are a big part of your diet now, cut back slowly. The AHA recommends mixing half sweetened and half unsweetened drinks to gradually reduce the sweetness and ease you off the sugar.
• Make your own smoothie. When you crave something sweet or need an afternoon energy boost, a homemade smoothie is a great alternative to coffee or soda. Blending frozen fruits and veggies with plain, low-fat yogurt, milk or water can provide the jolt you're looking for and may even save you a few pennies.
• Drink water. Water is clearly the best alternative, but can seem rather pedestrian for many. Experts suggest that you carry a refillable bottle and keep it close by. Quick access can help develop the habit of water as your go-to drink. To inject some flavor, add slices of fruit. And, my personal favorite, don't forget about sparkling water or seltzer. I like mine plain to protect against any artificial flavoring that should be avoided.
You can't exercise your way around bad nutritional habits. No matter how many minutes you log each week, the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages can offset your hard work and that's no small thing. Yes, these drinks are everywhere and sometimes they masquerade as healthy, but with a little attention to the details you can avoid the pitfalls. Yet another example where a little effort can make a big difference. I'll drink to that.
