Two soft drinks a day doubles risk of diabetes, study suggests

Research published in the European Journal of Endocrinology has warned that two glasses of fizzy drink a day can double the risk of developing diabetes.

The study warned that even consuming sugar-free drinks will not stop the likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes. The research involved over 2,800 adults who kept a year-long diary about what they drank every day.

People who drank two or more sweetened drinks a day were 2.4 times more likely to develop type 2 diabetes. For every 200ml of sugary fizzy drink consumed each day, the diabetes risk increased by 21 per cent.

Meanwhile, consuming more five or more sugar-free drinks per day increased the risk of developing the disease by 4.5 times.

The research suggested that artificial sweetener may be causing chemical reactions within the gut bacteria, which could lead to the body becoming less tolerant of glucose.

Josefin Löfvenborg, lead researcher of the study, said: “One hypothesis is that consumption of diet soft drinks may stimulate appetite making us increase our food intake, especially sweet or sugary foods, possibly leading us to become overweight which is a risk factor for diabetes.

“It has also been proposed that artificial sweeteners may negatively affect the balance of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ species of microbes in the gut, leading to glucose intolerance.”