Drinks with added sugars may be bad for heart: Study

Consuming sugary drinks may be linked to lipid imbalance, which increases the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), according to a study published on Wednesday.

The study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, found that drinking 12 ounces of sugary drinks more than once per day is linked to lower levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), and higher levels of triglycerides, in middle aged and older adults.

Both the conditions have been shown to increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, the researchers said.

In previous studies, added sugars have been shown to increase cardiovascular disease risk, they said.

"This research reinforces our understanding of the potential negative impact sugary drinks have on blood cholesterol, which increases heart disease risk," said Eduardo Sanchez, from the American Heart Association.

"It is yet one more reason for all of us to cut back on sodas and other sugar-sweetened beverages," Sanchez said.

Researchers hypothesised that dyslipidemia, an unhealthy imbalance of cholesterol and triglyceride levels in the blood, could be one pathway by which sugary drinks may increase cardiovascular disease risk.

To determine the association between sugary drinks on triglyceride and cholesterol levels, researchers studied observational medical data of up to 5,924 participants from the Offspring and Generation 3 cohorts of the Framingham Heart Study.

They were followed for an average of 12.5 years between 1991 and 2014.