In a new study, a team of scientists from the University of California-San Francisco (USA) explains regularly drinking lots of sugary soda could lead to premature aging of immune cells , leaving the body vulnerable to chronic diseases.
To reach this conclusion, the experts conducted an experiment with 5,309 volunteers between the ages of 20 and 65 with no signs of a history of cardiovascular disease or diabetes. Around 21% of this representative sample acknowledged drinking at least 600ml per day of sugary drinks.
The scientists measured telomeres through the participants’ DNA, discovering that the more sugary drink they consumed, the shorter their telomeres were . According to his calculations, 0.6 liters of soft drinks each day was associated with about 4.6 years of additional biological aging.
“Regular consumption of sugary carbonated drinks could influence the development of the disease. Not only due to the effort of metabolic control of the body in terms of sugars, but also through the acceleration of cellular aging of the tissues ”, says Elissa Epel, leader of the study.
The effect of sugary drinks on the body is comparable to that of tobacco, according to the researchers in the American Journal of Public Health . This is the first demonstration that sugary drinks can be associated with telomere shortening, and the results held true regardless of factors such as age, race, income, and education level.
“We know that telomere shortening begins long before the onset of the disease. And, despite the fact that we only studied adults, it is possible that the consumption of soft drinks is also related to the shortening of telomeres in children ”, emphasizes Epel.
