This Just In from The Journal of the American Medical Association
As a health writer, I have accessed to embargoed studies that can't be written about until a specified date. I'm glad to say that the embargo on this one expired Monday July 28, so this may be the first place you're reading about this phenomenal study officially published in Monday's Archives of Internal Medicine, a sister publication of JAMA.
This study examined the association between type 2 diabetes, weight gain and- get this- the consumption of soft drinks and fruit drinks. They looked at over 43,000 women over the course of ten years, during which almost 3,000 of the women developed Type ll diabetes.
The findings were disturbing.
The women who drank two or more soft drinks per day had a 24% increase in their risk for diabetes. So far, not too shocking. But here's the kicker: The women who drank two or more fruit drinks per day had a 31% increase in their risk (grapefruit juice and orange juice were not statistically associated with the risk).
This is important. We've been brainwashed into thinking these crummy "fruit drinks" are healthier than sodas, when- as any reader of this newsletter knows- they're not. "Consumption of fruit drinks conveyed as high an increase in risk as did consumption of soft drinks", the researchers wrote. The higher the consumption of soda, fruit juices, fortified fruit drinks and Kool-Aid, the higher the risk. "The public should be made aware that these drinks are not a healthy alternative to soft drinks with regard to risk of Type ll diabetes", the authors wrote.
In a related study, researchers from Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge analyzed blood vitamin C levels and fruit and vegetable intake in over 21,000 people who didn't have diabetes at the beginning of the study. Over 12 years, 735 participants developed diabetes. But the odds of developing diabetes was- get this- a whopping 62% lower for those who had the highest levels of vitamin C in their system.
Fruits and vegetables are a great source of vitamin C, and in my opinion, it never hurts to take a vitamin C supplement as well.
It's worth pointing out that homemade juice from combinations of vegetables and fruits have an awful lot of potential benefits, especially if they're not too high in sugar. (I'm pretty sure that the study that found increased risk for diabetes from fruit drinks wasn't talking about the kind of juice you make at home with your Vita-Mix.) It's also worth pointing out that an apple is a very different "animal" from a pasteurized apple juice "drink" that is marketed as a healthy alternative to soda. (It's not.)
This study examined the association between type 2 diabetes, weight gain and- get this- the consumption of soft drinks and fruit drinks. They looked at over 43,000 women over the course of ten years, during which almost 3,000 of the women developed Type ll diabetes.
The findings were disturbing.
The women who drank two or more soft drinks per day had a 24% increase in their risk for diabetes. So far, not too shocking. But here's the kicker: The women who drank two or more fruit drinks per day had a 31% increase in their risk (grapefruit juice and orange juice were not statistically associated with the risk).
This is important. We've been brainwashed into thinking these crummy "fruit drinks" are healthier than sodas, when- as any reader of this newsletter knows- they're not. "Consumption of fruit drinks conveyed as high an increase in risk as did consumption of soft drinks", the researchers wrote. The higher the consumption of soda, fruit juices, fortified fruit drinks and Kool-Aid, the higher the risk. "The public should be made aware that these drinks are not a healthy alternative to soft drinks with regard to risk of Type ll diabetes", the authors wrote.
In a related study, researchers from Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge analyzed blood vitamin C levels and fruit and vegetable intake in over 21,000 people who didn't have diabetes at the beginning of the study. Over 12 years, 735 participants developed diabetes. But the odds of developing diabetes was- get this- a whopping 62% lower for those who had the highest levels of vitamin C in their system.
Fruits and vegetables are a great source of vitamin C, and in my opinion, it never hurts to take a vitamin C supplement as well.
It's worth pointing out that homemade juice from combinations of vegetables and fruits have an awful lot of potential benefits, especially if they're not too high in sugar. (I'm pretty sure that the study that found increased risk for diabetes from fruit drinks wasn't talking about the kind of juice you make at home with your Vita-Mix.) It's also worth pointing out that an apple is a very different "animal" from a pasteurized apple juice "drink" that is marketed as a healthy alternative to soda. (It's not.)
Jonny Bowden, PhD, C.N.S. is a nationally known expert on weight loss, nutrition and health and is the author of several best-selling books.
Hi Dr Jonny--love your blog. I'm curious if this study is only for sugar- (or HFCS-) sweetened sodas/juice drinks or if it also included those sweetened with artificial sweeteners such as sucralose? Thanks for all the great info you provide!
Jonny,
You failed to mention that the study was performed on African-American women.
You're absolutely right, but I didn't think it was significant or material. All studies are performed on some limited population group (men over 40, postmenopausal women, kids in Iowa, etc). The mechanisms for diabetes, insulin and sugar are the same, so the study is relevant to everyone. In fact, since this population has a high rate of diabetes, it's even more relevant for determining the contributing factors.
warmly
jb
Suzique-
hi- they also studied diet sodas which did not seem to confer the same diabetes risk, though other studies have shown increase in risk of obesity for increased consumption of diet sodas.
warmly
jb
Hello. In Australia there has been a bit of press about fructose being metabolised by the liver and contributing to fatty liver. It is used in processed foods due to it being addictive and I have seen it in some protein powders. Thanks for your interesting site. Lynn
Any time we get too involved in the processing of our own food, we screw up what nature has developed for us over the past couple hunded thousand years.
I took my 8 year old daughter for a bike ride on the Hollywood Board Walk (Hollywood, FL) where we found Josh's Organic Garden, a small organic farmer's market. We sat down and I treated her to a freshly juiced apple juice. She said it was the best tasting juice she'd ever had. It tasted like a real apple she said.
Pasturize that juice and it's basically sugar water with no active enzymes, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants..etc..etc..
Eventually, when all these people are obese and dying, they'll eventually admit their commercialy raised and processed foods are exactly the reason we have an obesity, heart disease, cancer, diabetes, etc. etc. etc. problem in the USA.
Thanks again JB for bringing this information to the public.
Hi Jonny. I'm curious about sports drinks like Gatorade. Much as I dislike drinking it because of the high fructose corn syrup and neon color, I find I can't get thru my intense, 90 minute heated power yoga classes without it. I've tried just plain water, sometimes with 100% juice, but it's not replacing the electrolytes, and leaves me drained and exhausted. Any recommendations that are healthier than Gatorade, that provide what sweat takes out of us? Thanks for your input...
I wish someone would do a similar study when it comes to the consumption of "sweet tea" as they call it down here in North Carolina. I moved to NC from PA and the first thing that shocked me was the amount of iced tea that is consumed here with tons of sugar. It's everywhere! It's served at Chinese restaurants, fast food joints, in school cafeterias, etc. Many people here think that they're consuming something healthy because they hear about the health benefits of tea. Ugh!
Hi Terri
You could try ACCELERADE, which is pretty darn good. Or you could simply take a multimineral pill with potassium, magnesium, etc (even a little sea salt), and make your own water based diluted juice drink like you mention- just add the pill for electrolytes.
otherwise, small amounts of gatorade are probably fine. I too hate the HFCS but if you can't get through class without it, what are you gonna do?
warmly
jb
In regard to the 2nd study that women who had the highest Vitamin C levels had the lowest risk of diabetes, Gary Taubes in "Good Calories, Bad Calories" states that glucose uses the same enzymatic pathway in the body as Ascorbic Acid (aka Vit. C) and that this was the reason that Arctic explorers living only on meat could survive and not develop scurvy. My point is that low blood levels Vitamin C may be a marker for excessive consumption of carbohydrates. It may be that high consumption of sugars and starches is preventing absorption of Vit. C
That is an excellent point!
warmly
jb
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