Can fizzy drinks and fruit juice increase stroke risk? New study finds links
If you enjoy a glass of fruit juice with your breakfast or a fizzy drink after dinner, it might be time to consider pumping the brakes.
A new study suggests such drinks may be linked to a higher likelihood of strokes.
Frequent drinking of fizzy drinks or fruit juice was associated with an increased risk of stroke, according to new findings from global research studies co-led by University of Galway, in collaboration with McMaster University Canada and an international network of stroke researchers.
Coffee lovers, there’s bad news for you, too. The research also found that drinking more than four cups of coffee per day appears to increase the risk of stroke.
However, experts say those consumers fond of sparkling water can sip easy since this study refers specifically to sugary drinks.
“This really refers to the sugary drinks, the fizzy soft drinks. And interestingly, diet fizzy drinks as well,” said Manuel Arango, vice-president of policy and advocacy at the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
According to the report, it doesn’t matter if your fizzy drink of choice is sugar-sweetened or artificially sweetened, such as diet or zero sugar drinks. Both kinds of drinks were linked with a 22-per cent increased chance of stroke. The risk increased sharply for anyone consuming two to three drinks a day.
“The problem of sugar substitutes is that it creates a societal craving for sugary things, which is not a good thing,” Arango said.
The research cautions against consuming fruit juice, too. It noted that many products marketed as “fruit juice” are made from concentrates and contain added sugars and preservatives, which may offset the benefits usually linked with fresh fruit.
Such drinks were linked to a 37 per cent increase in chance of
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