Sugary Drinks May Kill 184,000 People Yearly, Study

In the first global report on sugar sweetened beverages, scientists believe that these soda and energy drinks may be linked to 184,000 adult deaths worldwide.

The experts believe that the regular consumption of sugar sweetened beverage might be linked to deaths and disabilities caused by heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

"This is a single dietary factor with no intrinsic health value causing tens of thousands of deaths per year," said study coauthor Dr. Dariush Mozaffarian, dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science & Policy at Tufts University. "It's time to remove sugary beverages from the food supply."

Out of the 20 most populated countries, the US ranked second in the highest death rates attributable to sugar sweetened beverages with 125 deaths per million adults (25,000 deaths in total) while Mexico was the highest with 405 deaths per million adults ( 24,000 deaths in total).

"Among the 20 countries with the highest estimated sugar-sweetened beverage-related deaths, at least eight were in Latin America and the Caribbean, reflecting the high intakes in that region of the world," said lead author Gitanjali Singh, Assistant professor at Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy in Tufts University.

"The health impact of sugar-sweetened beverage intake on the young is important because younger adults form a large sector of the workforce in many countries, so the economic impact of sugar-sweetened beverage-related deaths and disability in this age group can be significant," Singh said.

For the study, scientists considered sugar sweetened drinks that contain at least 50 Kcal per 8oz servings which include fruit drinks, ice tea, sports/energy drinks, or sweetened sodas.