You actually want to read the outcome of the groundbreaking study from the University of Michigan
Drinking sugary beverages is associated with a slightly increased risk for early death, a new study has found.
A groundbreaking study from the University of Michigan has uncovered that a single can of soda could cut down your lifespan by a staggering 12 minutes. With millions of Americans indulging in sugary beverages daily, this revelation is ringing alarm bells about the hidden dangers lurking in every fizzy sip.;
Researchers used data from two large continuing health studies begun in the 1980s that include more than 118,000 men and women. Among many other health, behavioral and diet characteristics, the researchers collected data about their consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, including noncarbonated fruit punches, lemonades and other sugary fruit drinks.
Over about 30 years, there were 36,436 deaths. The more sugar-sweetened drinks people consumed, the higher their risk for death. After controlling for many health, behavioral and dietary characteristics, the researchers found that each additional daily 12-ounce serving of sugary drinks was associated with a 7 percent increased risk for death from any cause, a 5 percent increased risk for cancer death, and a 10 percent increased risk for death from cardiovascular disease. The study appears in the journal Circulation.
“The optimal intake of these drinks is zero,” said the lead author, Vasanti S. Malik, a research scientist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. “They have no health benefits.”
Replacing sugary soda with diet soda, she said, would reduce the risk, but the long-term effect of diet drinks is unknown. Still, she said, “Diet drinks are a reasonable alternative, with the ultimate goal of switching to water.”;
Interrogating the number
While these numbers shouldn’t be taken as precise measurements applicable to every individual, they represent a compelling way to understand how our food choices create cumulative effects on our health and longevity. The minutes add up – drink a soda daily for a year, and based on these estimates, you’ve potentially surrendered 73 hours of your life.
The mechanics behind these effects reveal how profoundly food influences our biochemistry. Sugar-sweetened beverages cause rapid spikes in blood glucose that trigger inflammatory responses throughout the body. This inflammation, when chronic, damages blood vessels, stresses vital organs, and accelerates cellular aging processes. The regular consumption of these drinks has been definitively linked to increased risks of heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and other metabolic disorders.
What makes this particularly concerning is how these beverages have been carefully engineered to override our natural satiety signals. The combination of sugar, caffeine, and carbonation creates a powerful reward response in the brain without providing nutritional value or triggering the normal fullness cues that whole foods provide.
This research invites us to consider our food choices not just in terms of calories or taste, but as either investments in or withdrawals from our health accounts. Each time we choose water, herbal tea, or whole foods over processed alternatives, we’re potentially adding minutes to our lives – minutes that compound into hours, days, and eventually years of healthier living.
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