Study: 12 oz of Daily Soda Consumption Ages Cells 4.6 Years

While soda with a high-sugar content is best known for promoting obesity, it could also cause chronic illnesses associated with cell aging, according to a recent study.

In order to better understand the relationship between soda consumption and cell aging, researchers measured telomeres—the protective parts of DNA attached to chromosomes within our cells—from the stored DNA of 5309 individuals (ages 20 to 65 years) with no diabetes history and who were participants in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 1999 to 2002.
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The mean consumption of sugar-sweetened soda for all participants was 12 ounces; of the survey sample, 20% reported drinking a minimum of 20 ounces a day.

The study showed that the amount of sugar-sweetened soda consumption was linked to shorter telomeres.

Note: Shorter telomeres have previously been associated with other chronic conditions like heart disease, diabetes, and certain forms of cancer.

According to researchers, consumption of a 20-ounce soda caused 4.6 years of additional biological aging of the cell, which is comparable to the impact of smoking.

“Regular consumption of sugar-sweetened sodas might influence disease development, not only by straining the body’s metabolic control of sugars, but also through accelerated cellular aging of tissues. This is the first demonstration that soda is associated with telomere [DNA protective units that cap the ends of cell chromosomes] shortness,” said Elissa Epel, PhD, the senior author of the study and professor of psychiatry at UCSF.

“This finding held regardless of age, race, income, and education level. Telomere shortening starts long before disease onset.  Further, although we only studied adults here, it is possible that soda consumption is associated with telomere shortening in children, as well,” she said.

Researchers cautioned that due to the nature of the study, the results do not demonstrate causation, and that a new study tracking telomere lengths in participants over a long period of time is already underway.

The complete study is published in the October issue of the American Journal of Public Health.

-Michelle Canales

Reference:

University of California San Francisco. UCSF scientists find shorter telomeres in immune cells of soda drinkers. October 16, 2014. www.ucsf.edu/news/2014/10/119431/sugared-soda-consumption-cell-aging-associated-new-study.  Accessed October 20, 2014.