A new study conducted by the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association has found that drinking two or more diet beverages in a day is linked to an increased risk of strokes, heart attacks, and even premature death in women who are above 50 years of age.
Previous studies have found a link between diet beverages and stroke, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and dementia. All of them leading to heart disease.
Dr. Ralph Sacco, president of American Academy of Neurology said; “This is another confirmatory study showing a relationship between artificially sweetened beverages and vascular risks. While we cannot show causation, this is a yellow flag to pay attention to these findings.” He was not involved in the new study.
The new study found that women who drank diet drinks on a regular basis were:
- 23 percent more likely to suffer from a stroke
- 31 percent more likely to have an ischemic stroke
- 29 percent more likely to develop heart disease
- 16 percent more likely to die prematurely from any cause
For women who drank two or more diet beverages on a daily basis, the risk increased twofold.
Yasmin Mossavar-Rahmani, Professor of Clinical Epidemiology and Population Health, said, “While many people use diet drinks or beverages with no-calorie sweeteners as a way to lower sugar and calorie consumption, those beverages may not be harmless and high consumption is associated with a higher risk of stroke and heart disease.” The researchers found a link between diet drinks and the risk of stroke and heart attack. However, the researchers did not investigate the types of diet beverages and they cannot determine the ingredients that are harmful and increase the risk of stroke and heart disease.
