Study Allegedly Links Sweetened Beverage Consumption to Weight Gain
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health have reportedly found that “liquid calorie intake had a stronger impact on weight than solid calorie intake.” Liwei Chen, et al, “Reduction in consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with weight loss: the PREMIER trial,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, April 2009. According to an April 2, 2009, press release, the study focused on 810 adults ages 25 to 79 enrolled in the PREMIER trial, an 18-month, randomized, controlled, behavioral intervention. Using unannounced phone interviews to track dietary habits, researchers found that sugar-sweetened beverage accounted for 37 percent of all liquid calories consumed by participants. The authors apparently speculated that although the body can regulate its intake of solid food, it is unable to similarly manage liquid calories. “Among beverages, sugar-sweetened beverages was the only beverage type significantly associated with weight change at both the 6- and 18-month follow up,” lead author Liwei Chen, M.D., Ph.D., M.H.S., was quoted as saying. “Our study supports policy recommendations and public health efforts to reduce intakes of liquid calories, particularly from sugar-sweetened beverages, in the general population.” See Forbes.com, April 2, 2009.
Meanwhile, a second study appearing in this month’s American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has linked sweetened beverage consumption to an increased risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) in women. T.T. Fung, et al., “Sweetened Beverage Consumption and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in Women,” American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, April 2009. Researchers from Harvard Medical School and Simmons
College relied on data from the Nurse’s Health Study, which gathered seven food-frequency questionnaires from 88,520 women ages 24 to 29 who were free of CHD, stroke or diabetes at the start of the study in 1980. After adjusting for other risk factors, the study concluded that women who consumed two or more sweetened beverage servings per day increased their CHD risk by 35 percent. “Fructose has been the major sweetener in [sugar sweetened beverages] since the mid-1980s, and it increases triacylglycerol synthesis in the liver, which results in elevated triacylglycerol concentrations, which have been associated with a greater risk of CHD,” said the authors about a possible explanation for their findings, adding that the impact of fructose on blood uric acid concentrations may also be a factor. See FoodNavigator. com, March 27, 2009.
In a related development, researchers with the Johns Hopkins Schools of Medicine have published a paper furthering the theory of a purported link between fructose consumption and increased food intake. M. Daniel Lane and Seung Hun Cha, “Effects of Glucose and Fructose on Food Intake Via Malonyl-CoA Signaling in the Brain,” Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, March 3, 2009. The review reportedly builds upon previous works “dealing with the role of malonylCoA in the signaling system in the brain (specifically the hypothalamus) that has inputs into the higher brain centers that determine feeding behavior, most notably appetite.” The authors apparently postulate that while glucose acts in the brain to curb food intake, fructose consumption increases appetite and may contribute to the rising occurrence of insulin resistance and Type 2 diabetes. “We feel that these findings may have particular relevance to the massive increase in the use of high fructose sweeteners (both high fructose corn syrups and table sugar) in virtually all sweetened foods, most notably soft drinks,” stated the lead author. See ScienceDaily, March 26, 2009.
