High soft drink consumption multiplies risk of diabetes, study shows

• · New diabetes study Aug. 24: New research looks at how drinking sugary drinks like sodas and fruit juices contributes to a woman's risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
• Obesity is strongly linked to type 2 diabetes --- the most common form of diabetes --- so the extra calories from soda account for at least some of the increased risk, said the Harvard University researchers who did the study.
• But the scientists said there also appears to be a link to the way the body handles the sugars in soft drinks --- a claim two outside experts said needs more research.
• Industry critical of study A soft drink trade group said the study's conclusions were not scientifically sound and that the focus should be on the unhealthy lifestyles and weight gain that can lead to diabetes --- not soft drinks.
• The soft drink study, which appears in Tuesday's Journal of the American Medical Association, involved an analysis of data from a continuing health study of 51,603 female nurses.
• Researchers found that women drinking one or more sugar-sweetened soft drinks a day were twice as likely to develop diabetes as women who drank fewer than one a month.
• Even when they considered such factors as weight, diet and lifestyle differences, the researchers still found that women drinking sugary sodas were 1.3 times as likely to develop diabetes.
• "I think there is a very practical implication of this study, both for weight control and for type 2 diabetes --- keep soda consumption low," said Willett, chairman of the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health.