Yet another risk in consuming diet drinks has been discovered by researchers, as a study found a connection between the consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks, and juices with an increased risk of dangerous heart arrythmia disorders. The study was published in the medical journal Circulation.
The researchers analyzed data from the British Biobank database, which includes information on more than half a million Britons. The subjects were found to not have suffered from cardiac arrhythmias before the test. The researchers found that overweight women or women with diabetes were more likely to drink diet drinks. Consumption of sugary drinks was found to be common in overweight men or men of lower socioeconomic groups.
The researchers found a 20% higher risk of atrial fibrillation in adults who drank around two liters of diet drinks per week, compared to those who consumed smaller amounts. The researchers found that the risk of the arrythmia was halved to approximately 10% higher among people who drank similar amounts of sugar-sweetened beverages. Drinking a similar amount of orange juice or other fruit juices led to an 8% higher risk of arrythmia disorder compared to those who consumed a lower amount of sugary drinks.
Smoking as an additional risk
Additionally, the study found that smoking may also increase the risk of atrial fibrillation: smokers who drank at least two liters of sugary drinks per week had a 31% higher risk of having an arrhythmia, compared to those who never smoked, or ex-smokers. The highest risk was in the consumption of drinks sweetened with sucralose, aspartame, saccharin, and acesulfame.
“Although the mechanisms linking sugary drinks and risk of atrial fibrillation are still unclear, there are several possible explanations, including insulin resistance and the body’s response to various sweeteners,” the researchers said, “Based on the findings, we recommend that people reduce or even avoid sugary or artificially sweetened beverages whenever possible. Drinking low-calorie drinks can also be dangerous.”
Israelis suffering from heart diseases
According to estimates, about 100,000 Israelis suffer from atrial fibrillation, which is characterized by a very high heart rate of 300 to 600 pulses per minute, instead of 60 to 100. Fortunately, only a small part of these electrical currents pass into the heart’s chamber, but when this happens, the heart contracts at a tremendous speed of around 100 to 150 beats per minute.
It is difficult to detect arrythmia disorders because there are often no visible symptoms. However, some patients may suffer from symptoms including palpitations, weakness, fatigue, dizziness, and chest pains.
The main danger associated with arrhythmia disorders is the formation of blood clots due to turbulence created in the heart, blood that does not flow continuously and the lack of synchronization between the ascents and the chambers of the heart. These blood clots can cause a stroke in about 7% of people with atrial fibrillation. Atrial fibrillation is detected on an EKG device.
