ObesityHeart problems, Liver cancer, memory problems… As research on the subject progresses, the list of harmful effects of consuming soft drinks continues to grow. And a recently published study adds one more: these sugary drinks could impacts our mental health.
Very popular soft drinks among the French.
They have a bad reputation, and yet soft drinks are still widely consumed by the French, especially among teenagers. The French consume on average more than 50 liters of sugary drinks per yearbased on 2019 data. But not all countries show the same consumption trend. Mexico is positioned at the top of the ranking with an average consumption of 146.5 liters per capita (LPH). Just behind, Chile averages 143.8 LPH, while the United States rounds out the podium with 125.9 LPH.
Behind the cool image associated with these drinks hide many dangers to the health of those who enjoy them, linked to their composition. Sugary soft drinks are often noted for their high sugar content. And with good reason: consuming one liter of certain brands of soft drink is equivalent to ingesting almost 20 sugar cubes. By reducing this to a single can, the consumer ingests approximately six sugar cubes.
Adverse effects on mental health
Depression is a complex illness that results from multiple factors. In addition to genetic predispositions inevitable, some life events such as death, job loss, or separation are associated with an increased risk of depression. Furthermore, this condition is more common among very sedentary people, heavy alcohol consumers, smokers, as well as among socially isolated people.
An additional element now enriches this list of risk factors: according to a recent study carried out by researchers at Sungkyunkwan University in South Korea, it seems that fans of sweet and carbonated drinks submit a increased risk of depression compared to the general population.
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A study confirms the risks
To reach this conclusion, researchers have carefully analysis medical data relating to 87,115 adults, in this case korean citizens whose average age was 39.5 years. They found that, even excluding the influence of certain environmental factors such as smoking, physical activity level, blood pressure and body mass index, individuals who consume one soft drink a day (equivalent to 20 cl) presented a increased risk of developing depressive symptoms compared to those who did not drink it.
In comments reported by the magazine. future-sciences Ju Young-Jung, co-author of the study on the subject and researcher at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital at Sungkyunkwan University in South Korea, explains: “It is surprising to observe that the group that consumed sugary soft drinks at least once a week presented a higher frequency of depressive symptoms than the group that did not drink anything”.
