High-Sugar Diet is Linked to the Development of Heart Diseases: Study

Intake of sugar is linked to the development of heart diseases and increased blood pressure, according to a study.
Clinical trials have warned against excessive consumption of sugary treats and snacks that ups the risk of dental diseases, type-2 diabetes and obesity. Recently, experts from the University of Otago in New Zealand discovered a direct association between eating added sugar and the risk of factors for cardiovascular diseases that include high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels. They used data from published studies that were conducted between 1965 and 2013 to note the effects of both sugar and non- sugar diets on lipids in the blood and blood pressure.
The experts identified 37 experiments testing the effects of these diets on lipids and 12 tests on blood pressure. The results of individual studies were merged to observe the overall effects on the heart health.
Their findings revealed participants who followed high-sugar diet gained excess weight compared to those who ate low sugar-food. But, the total amount of carbohydrate and energy levels in the body was uniform for all subjects proving that sugar intake did not have a metabolic effect.
"Our analysis confirmed that sugars contribute to cardiovascular risk, independent of the effect of sugars on body weight, "said Lisa Te Morenga, study author and researcher from University of Otago, reports Financial Express.
"Although the effects of sugars on blood pressure and lipids are relatively modest, our findings support public health recommendations to reduce added sugar in our diets as one of the measures which might be expected to reduce the global burden of cardiovascular diseases."
The results from current studies suggest our body reacts differently to sugar by having an immediate impact on blood lipid levels and blood pressure.
"We were also relatively surprised that there was a positive association between sugars and cardio-metabolic risk factors given that a large body of the research which met our inclusion criteria is funded by the food industry. This is because such trials are less likely to find a significant association between sugars and health outcomes," Te Morenga said.
Furthermore, the study found evidence on commercial food products that are high in sugar content against the industry guidelines and recommendations.
More information is available online in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
May 18, 2014 12:28 PM EDT