Study Links Sugar to Elevated Risk of Cardiovascular Disease

A recent study has apparently found a “statistically significant association” between added dietary sugars and increased blood lipid levels in U.S. adults. Jean Welsh, et al., “Caloric Sweetener Consumption and Dyslipidemia Among US Adults,” Journal of the American Medical Association, April 2010. Researchers analyzed blood lipid levels and other nutritional data obtained from more than 6,000 men and women enrolled in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) between 1999 and 2006. Their results reportedly demonstrated that “increased added sugars are associated with important cardiovascular disease risk factors, including lower HDL-C [good cholesterol] levels, higher triglyceride levels, and higher ratios of triglycerides to HDL-C.”

Compared with participants who received less than 5 percent of their daily caloric intake from added sugars, those who consumed the highest amount—46 teaspoons per day—were most at risk for developing heart disease. The authors contend that these findings “support the importance of dietary guidelines that encourage consumers to limit their intake of added sugars.” In addition, their evidence purportedly lends weight to proposals “for specific labeling on food and beverage packaging” that would differentiate between naturally occurring and added sweeteners. “While the overall effect of these dietary trends in unclear, there is a need to review the dietary recommendations to see how they influence intake of added sugars and to develop further understanding of the role different carbohydrates and sugars play in increasing risk of chronic disease,” the study concludes. See NPR Health News, April 20, 2010.