Hold the diet soda? Sweetened drinks linked to depression, coffee tied to lower risk

January 8, 2013 in Health

coffee

New research suggests that drinking sweetened beverages, especially diet drinks, is associated with an increased risk of depression in adults while drinking coffee was tied to a slightly lower risk. The study was released today and will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 65th Annual Meeting in San Diego, March 16 to 23, 2013.

"Sweetened , coffee and tea are commonly consumed worldwide and have important physical—and may have important mental—health consequences," said study author Honglei Chen, MD, PhD, with the National Institutes of Health in Research Triangle Park in North Carolina and a member of the American Academy of Neurology.

The study involved 263,925 people between the ages of 50 and 71 at enrollment. From 1995 to 1996, consumption of drinks such as , tea, fruit punch and coffee was evaluated. About 10 years later, researchers asked the participants whether they had been diagnosed with since the year 2000. A total of 11,311 depression diagnoses were made.

People who drank more than four cans or cups per day of soda were 30 percent more likely to develop depression than those who drank no soda. Those who drank four cans of fruit punch per day were about 38 percent more likely to develop depression than those who did not drink sweetened drinks. People who drank four cups of coffee per day were about 10 percent less likely to develop depression than those who drank no coffee. The risk appeared to be greater for people who drank than regular soda, diet than regular fruit punches and for diet than regular iced tea.

"Our research suggests that cutting out or down on sweetened diet drinks or replacing them with unsweetened may naturally help lower your depression risk," said Chen. "More research is needed to confirm these findings, and people with depression should continue to take depression medications prescribed by their doctors."

Provided by American Academy of Neurology search and more info website

3.7 /5 (10 votes)  

Filter


Move the slider to adjust rank threshold, so that you can hide some of the comments.


Display comments: newest first

gurloc
Jan 08, 2013

Rank: 5 / 5 (6)
Why do people drink diet drinks? Because they are concerned about their weight. People who believe they are overweight are more likely to be depressed then people who do not believe they are overweight.

Its good to be reminded that science and medicine are only vaguely related fields. The casual connections they try to draw in a lot of these medical studies are absolutely laughable.
A2G
Jan 08, 2013

Rank: not rated yet
Agreed qurloc, this whole "linked" thing has misused so many times in medical research. Then also consider that people who do not drink sodas also tend to eat better foods and exercise more. Who would have ever considered that to have an effect on depression?

But as for me, I don't drink sodas because they are too damn sweet plus processed sugar and artificial sweeteners are also suspect. I even use agave in my coffee and you can't tell that from sugar.

Cancer also feeds off of sugars. That is why they used sugar as the carrier for the radioactive stuff that shows up in the PET scan. The cancer feeds on the sugar and therefore the RA isotope is concentrated in the cancer, therefore it can be imaged on a PET scan.

But in the end this study should be looked at as obesity is the main cause of depression as well as most other health issues.

Exercise and a good diet are the best preventive medicine you can get. Ask any doctor.

Mareka
Jan 08, 2013

Rank: not rated yet
Did they stop to think that it might be the preservatives in the drinks?
RupertG-
Jan 09, 2013

Rank: not rated yet
I drink diet soda not to lose weight but to avoid sugar, and I enjoy the taste over water.
Since diet soda uses more than one sweetener which one is implicated?
So it seems the coffee only works if you avoid sweeteners, most people don't.
Which came first A2G, the depression or the weight? You seem to make as many link conclusions as the article. People who drink soda have a poorer diet. Obesity is the cause for depression. Sugar causes cancer growth. Seemingly chicken egg statements.
carriosity
Jan 09, 2013

Rank: not rated yet
I agree that the correlations assumed by the research community are nearly always premature, incomplete and sometimes, totally irrelevant. This fact is attested to by the unlimited number of results that are overturned or eventually proven incorrect. However in my humble experience, those of us who do drink unsweetened, black coffee, and in my case...lots of it, are usually included in a greater population of people who don't tend to have much of a 'sweet tooth' at all so sugar in other forms such as candy, soda, cakes, etc. are not a regular part of my diet. The people I know who do have a preference for lots of sugary items on a daily basis don't tend to drink coffee at all and the ones who do, use either sugar or a sweetened, flavored cream. It just seems clear to me that the products consumed do not dictate the personality/health trends but that the personality/health traits dictate the the types of products consumed and also lifestyle.
theskepticalpsychic
Jan 09, 2013

Rank: 1 / 5 (1)
As a lifelong compulsive eater suffering from PTSD, I can attest that many sweetener consumers turn to sweet foods and drinks because we are depressed and sweets consumption triggers pleasure centers in our brains. Learning therefore not to turn to food for comfort in depression, but to coping mechanisms that are sustainable over the long term, is the key to living with PTSD and other mood disorders.
Rank 3.7 /5 (10 votes)
Relevant PhysicsForums posts

More news stories

Aggressive behavior linked specifically to secondhand smoke exposure in childhood

Children who are exposed to secondhand smoke in early childhood are more likely to grow up to physically aggressive and antisocial, regardless of whether they were exposed during pregnancy or their parents have a history ...

Health created 1 hour ago | popularity 1 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Most elite athletes believe doping substances are effective in improving performance

Most elite athletes consider doping substances "are effective" in improving performance, while recognising that they constitute cheating, can endanger health and entail the obvious risk of sanction. At the same time, the ...

Health created 2 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

New rice contamination reported in China

Authorities are investigating rice mills in southern China following tests that found almost half of the staple grain in one of the country's largest cities was contaminated with a toxic metal.

Health created 5 hours ago | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Warning images for cigarette packs do not make a strong enough emotional impact

The warning images Brussels proposes to include on tobacco packages in order to reduce consumption do not make the desired impact on smokers because they only find some of them really unpleasant. So, if the ...

Health created 6 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0

Cancer and birth defects in Iraq: The nuclear legacy

Ten years after the Iraq war of 2003 a team of scientists based in Mosul, northern Iraq, have detected high levels of uranium contamination in soil samples at three sites in the province of Nineveh which, coupled with dramatically ...

Health created 6 hours ago | popularity not rated yet | comments 0


Drugs found to both prevent and treat Alzheimer's disease in mice

Researchers at USC have found that a class of pharmaceuticals can both prevent and treat Alzheimer's Disease in mice.

Decisions to forgo life support may depend heavily on the ICU where patients are treated

The decision to limit life support in patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) appears to be significantly influenced by physician practices and/or the culture of the hospital, suggests new findings from researchers at the ...

Better behavior after tonsil/adenoid surgery for kids with sleep breathing trouble?

Children with obstructive sleep apnea who had a common surgery to remove their tonsils and adenoids showed notable improvements in behavior, quality of life and other symptoms compared to those treated with "watchful waiting" ...

If you can remember it, you can remember it wrong

(Medical Xpress)—Native peoples in regions where cameras are uncommon sometimes react with caution when their picture is taken. The fear that something must have been stolen from them to create the photo ...

B vitamins could delay dementia

(Medical Xpress)—Despite spending billions of dollars on research and development, drug companies have been unable to come up with effective treatments for dementia and Alzheimer's Disease (AD). Now, A. ...

Insight into the dazzling impact of insulin in cells

Australian scientists have charted the path of insulin action in cells in precise detail like never before. This provides a comprehensive blueprint for understanding what goes wrong in diabetes.