New York, New York -- July 23, 2007. Scientists associated with the American Council on Science and Health (ACSH) question the conclusions of a paper purporting to find an association between soda consumption and several health indices (Dhingra R, et al. Soft drink consumption and risk of developing cardiometabolic risk factors and the metabolic syndrome in middle-aged adults in the community. Circulation 2007;116. 7/23/07).
The study supposedly finds that consumption of either diet or regular sodas increases the risk of the so-called "metabolic syndrome," a constellation of clinical and laboratory characteristics, that in turn, increase the risk of cardiac ailments and diabetes.
Any such study that tries to isolate the effect of one factor -- such as soda consumption -- from the complex of lifestyle characteristics that affect health is by definition oversimplifying the issue. ACSH nutrition director Dr. Ruth Kava observed, "The individuals in the study who drank the most soda were also the ones who were more likely to be obese, to smoke, and to be less active."
Further, there was little evidence of a dose-response curve -- there was no trend showing that the more soda study participants reported drinking, the more likely they would have an increased risk of the metabolic syndrome.
"There is no plausible biological explanation for this supposed correlation between soda consumption and the metabolic syndrome," according to Dr. Gilbert Ross, ACSH medical director. "The authors provide no credible basis for believing these associations are causal, or even real, or why both regular and diet soft drinks could be implicatedl," he continued.
ACSH scientists were disappointed that such a study was published in a well-respected, peer-reviewed journal. Dr. Elizabeth Whelan, ACSH president, noted, "This study does nothing to clarify which lifestyle factors are important in preventing disease -- indeed, it will merely confuse consumers about which actions they should take to preserve and protect their health."
Dr. Ross further commented, "the authors' suggestion that 'public health measures to limit the rising consumption of soft drink in the community may be associated with a lowered burden of metabolic risk factors in adults' is an absurd extrapolation towards restriction of adult choice to drink soda based upon a highly speculative study."
Contact:
Dr. Ruth Kava 212-362-7044 x234 kava[at]acsh.org
Dr. Gilbert Ross 212-362-7044 x242 ross[at]acsh.org
Dr. Elizabeth Whelan 212-362-7044 x228 whelan[at]acsh.org
The American Council on Science and Health is an independent, non-profit consumer education organization concerned with issues related to food, nutrition, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, lifestyle, the environment and health. For more information visit http://www.acsh.org or http://HealthFactsandFears.com
