Diet fizzy drinks can increase risk of dementia and stroke

So if you are one of those who defaults to some diet fizzy drinks and their artificial sweeteners in a quest to make sure you don’t gain weight, you are at risk.

In a study published in the American Heart Association journal Stroke it was found the risk of dementia and stroke were three times higher for people with a daily diet fizzy drink diet as opposed to those who consume it less than once a week.

This is on top of recent studies that said the drink doesn’t actually help you lose weight.

So taking sugary drinks such as fizzy and fruit juice do not result in weight gain although they are linked to type 2 diabetes risk.

Dr. Matthew Pase, study author and a senior fellow at the Boston University School of Medicine:

Although we did not find an association between stroke or dementia and the consumption of sugary drinks, this certainly does not mean they are a healthy option. We recommend that people drink water on a regular basis instead of sugary or artificially sweetened beverages.

The study looked at thousands of people over the age of 45 for seven years in the Framingham, Massachusetts, USA area.

The risk isn’t that startling though.

Pase continues:

Even if someone is three times as likely to develop stroke or dementia, it is by no means a certain fate. In our study, 3% of the people had a new stroke and 5% developed dementia, so we’re still talking about a small number of people developing stroke or dementia.

Still. You don’t want to be that one who developed it, no?

PIC: Mr.TinDC via Foter.com / CC BY-ND

With information from USA Today