THURSDAY, July 1 (Health.com) — Eating too much sodium can push your blood pressure into the danger zone. Now, researchers are reporting that eating too many sweets—or drinking too much soda—may have a similar effect.
People who consume a diet high in fructose, a type of sugar and a key ingredient in high-fructose corn syrup, are more likely to have high blood pressure (hypertension), according to a new study.
Drinking 2.5 cans or more of non-diet soda per day—or consuming an equivalent amount of fructose from other foods—increases your risk of hypertension by at least 30%, the study found. What’s more, the increased risk appears to be independent of other dietary habits, including sodium, carbohydrate, and overall calorie intake.
The study, which appears in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, focused on foods containing high-fructose corn syrup and other added sugars, such as soda, fruit punch, cookies, candy, and chocolate. (Although fructose occurs naturally in fruits, the researchers excluded them because they contain other nutrients that are difficult to measure.)
“High-fructose corn syrup is very prevalent,” says Michel Chonchol, MD, the senior author of the study and a blood pressure specialist at the University of Colorado, Anschutz Medical Campus, in Aurora. “If you go to grocery stores, it’s everywhere.”
Dr. Chonchol and his colleagues analyzed the diet and blood pressure readings of more than 4,500 U.S. adults with no history of hypertension. The data used in the study was collected in nationwide surveys over a four-year period by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and also included information on health measures such as physical activity and body mass index.
The researchers estimated each person’s fructose intake using detailed diet questionnaires and nutrition information from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The average fructose intake was 74 grams a day, an amount roughly equivalent to that found in 2.5 cans of soda.
People who consumed more than the average amount were more likely to have high blood pressure than people who consumed less, the researchers found. Above-average fructose intake increased the likelihood of having blood pressure above 140/90 and 160/100 mmHg by 30% and 77%, respectively. (Normal blood pressure is 120/80 or below, while anything above 140/90 is considered high.)
Hypertension can affect the health of blood vessels and is a leading risk factor for heart disease, kidney disease, and other ailments.
Next page: Study doesn’t prove that fructose causes hypertension
