Soft Drinks May Raise Your Risk of Depression, Study Finds

CasablancasTX

http://shine.yahoo.com/healthy-living/sweet-sodas-soft-drinks-may-raise-risk-depression-183000091.html

We know that sugary sodas aren't good for our bodies; now it turns out that they may not be good for our minds, either. A new study of more than 260,000 people has found a link between sweetened soft-drinks and depression -- and diet sodas may be making matters worse.

Related: Diet Soda May Be Making You Fat

Americans drink far more soda than people in other countries -- as much as 170 liters per person per year (no wonder New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg banned super-sized servings of the stuff). But the impact of this study isn't limited to the United States. "Sweetened beverages, coffee and tea are commonly consumed worldwide and have important physical-and may have important mental-health consequences," study author Dr. Honglei Chen, an investigator at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, said in a statement.

Related: Are the Health Risks of Soda Really That Bad?

The study, which was released on Tuesday and will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's annual meeting in March, involved 263,925 people between the ages of 50 and 71. Researchers tracked their consumption of beverages like soda, tea, coffee, and other soft drinks from 1995 to 1996 and then, 10 years later, asked them if they had been diagnosed with depression since the year 2000. More than 11,300 of them had.

Participants who drank more than four servings of soda per day were 30 percent more likely to develop depression than participants who did not drink soda at all. People who stuck with fruit punch had a 38 percent higher risk than people who didn't drink sweetened drinks.

And all that extra sugar isn't the actual problem: The research showed that low-calorie diet sodas, iced teas, and fruit punches were linked to an slightly higher risk of depression than the high-calorie stuff. Researchers say that the artificial sweetener aspartame may be to blame.

"Our findings are preliminary, and the underlying biological mechanisms are not known," said Chen. The study found an association but could not conclusively determine whether sodas and other sweet soft drinks cause depression, even after taking into account factors like age, gender, education, smoking, body mass index (BMI) and other issues. Still, the results "are intriguing and consistent with a small but growing body of evidence suggesting that artificially sweetened beverages may be associated with poor health outcomes."

But there's a bright side for those who can't do without the caffeinated jolt of their daily sodas. Adults who drank coffee had a 10 percent lower risk of depression compared to people who didn't drink any coffee, according to the study. That reinforces findings from a 2011 study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, which said that women who drink fully caffeinated coffee have a lower risk of depression than non-coffee drinkers.

"Our research suggests that cutting out or down on sweetened diet drinks or replacing them with unsweetened coffee may naturally help lower your depression risk," said Chen. "Coffee contains large amounts of caffeine, which is a well-known brain stimulant."

Chen cautions that, if you've been diagnosed with depression, cutting your soda intake isn't necessarily going to help. "More research is needed to confirm these findings," Chen said, "and people with depression should continue to take depression medications prescribed by their doctors."

What do you think?

kimosabe1

really? They make me happier than hay for a horse!

Stinkerbelle84

^^^ I have to agree! Some nights I would rather wind down with a soft drink instead of a glass of wine

Midnight_Sunshine

I would be interested to see if the participants who drank more sodas and showed depression signs lived less active lifestyles than the non-depressed participants. You could say people who are more likely to drink soda are also less likely to be active, eat well, be overweight, and maybe have fewer social ties. That is what I would say causes the depression, not the actual soda.

They say they take them into account but it's a pretty tough study to do stringently I'd say.


I think this is a case of "correlation does not prove causation".

laserturkey

That's funny, because when we are out of Diet Dr. Pepper is when I am wearing a super-sad face.

Elzecat

The only thing I can offer is my own personal perspective/experience. As a person who really has suffered from diagnosed clinical depression (mild/moderate) off and on for about the past 25 years...my depression issues did not disappear when I stopped drinking soda regularly two years ago, nor were they worse when I drank several sodas per day for years. Eating a better diet and exercising regularly have helped me have less episodes, but it's not gone, by any means. I'd have to read the actual study to decide what I think.

EnderNC

It's an interesting read. I think what makes it particularly interesting is the massive size of it. 260,000 people!? And the fact that they were studied over 10 years. Yeesh, the paper work must have been ridiculous. I didn't like that it only followed people between the ages of 50-71. I would like to say a broader demographic.

Oh and btw, the only reason coffee makes people less depressed is because they can feel proud of it. "Yes, I'm a true coffee connoisseur". No one ever says I'm a soda connoisseur....

Well, maybe us southern Cheerwine and RC drinkers ;P

Midnight_Sunshine

The only thing I can offer is my own personal perspective/experience. As a person who really has suffered from diagnosed clinical depression (mild/moderate) off and on for about the past 25 years...my depression issues did not disappear when I stopped drinking soda regularly two years ago, nor were they worse when I drank several sodas per day for years. Eating a better diet and exercising regularly have helped me have less episodes, but it's not gone, by any means. I'd have to read the actual study to decide what I think.

I definitely agree! I have mild depression and general anxiety disorder and both improve with exercise (I don't find that diet has much sway.. but I have never tried eating clean without exercising whereas I have exercised and had a bad diet and still saw improvement in the disorders).

And I don't like soda. I never have.

EDIT: Unless it has booze in it.

missability

I was on anti-depressants through-out my entire 30's I drank Mc D's diet coke like it was going out of style. On September 2nd, 2007 I stopped, cold turkey, the depression lessened dramatically, but then I started drinking unsweetened tea and adding equal packets. Within a few short weeks the depression was back with a vengeance! When I gave that up, and stuck to nothing but plain unsweetened tea, no additives. The depression vanished again. That was enough for me. All I drink is Teas' Tea pure unsweetened green tea (I buy it by the case on Amazon), and water with Lemon, Lime, and occasionally oranges or pineapple. I have been off all anti-depressants for a long time, and will not ever drink that stuff again!

WendyTerry420

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

A.K.A. Food Police

'nuff said

/ thread

sm1zzle

Another reason to ditch the diet poison.

Strength2Succeed

I have anxiety/depression. Sugar/caffeine DEFINITELY trigger symptoms related to my condition. It has been recommended that sugars and caffiene be reduced as much as possible.
I know when I have taken in too much of these because I will get very depressed or start to have panic attacks. My body is at the point it rejects fast food as well. Exercise helps a great deal, I try to fit any form of exercise in as much as possible.
Edited to add: Since I have changed my eating habits, taken in more water and exercising I have been able to reduce the amount of medication prescribed. Almost at the goal of coming off the medications completely This is a huge success as I was up to 6 medications!!