Artificially sweetened “diet” soda may not be the healthier alternative as many had hoped. A new study suggests diet soda may increase the risk of stroke, MI, and vascular death.
The researchers asked the drinking habit of 2,500 people and followed them for 9 years.
They found that people who had diet soda every day experienced a 61% higher risk of vascular events than those who reported drinking no soda.
The researchers, however, did not recommend all patients with metabolic syndrome (i.e. patients with diabetes, high cholesterol and hypertension) to stop drinking diet soft drinks immediately.
Instead, they recommended those patients to first focus on a healthy diet and regular exercise. Once their metabolic syndrome is under control, they can then consider cutting back the diet soda.
Source: Presented at the International Stroke Conference 2011.
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