Cutting out sugary drinks linked to improved levels of ‘good cholesterol’ in children

07-Sep-2015 - Last updated on 08-Sep-2015 at 15:47 GMT

Related tags Obesity

Lowering the consumption of sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) by at least one serving per week could help to improve markers of cholesterol, according to new research in school children.

While a plethora of research has investigated the potential links between SSBs, like carbonated soda’s, and risks markers of cardio-metabolic health including insulin sensitivity and obesity in adults and children – there sparse longitudinal evidence in children, noted the authors behind the current study.

"A clustering of risk factors including high triglycerides, low HDL-C, insulin resistance, and obesity, especially if begun in childhood, puts one at higher risk for future cardiovascular disease,” commented study first author Dr Maria Van Rompay – from the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.

“In this study, we sought to better understand the relationship between lipid levels and SSB consumption in a population of schoolchildren in which health disparities were likely, and where future interventions could help improve diet quality and disease risk," she said.

Writing in The Journal of Nutrition, the team reported that high sugary drink intake was found to be associated with lower socioeconomic status, higher total energy, lower fruit and vegetable intake, and more sedentary time.

Furthermore, a cross-sectional analysis showed that greater SSB intake was associated with higher plasma triglyceride (TG) concentrations, while longitudinal analysis showed that decreased intake of SSBs over the 12 month period was associated with increases in plasma HDL-cholesterol concentrations.

"Importantly, not only are most SSBs high in sugar and devoid of nutritional value, but they are displacing other foods and beverages that offer high nutritional quality, which are critical for children's growth and development, further exacerbating the potential harmful health effects of SSBs,” added study senior author Jennifer Sacheck.

Study details

In the new study, children ages 8 to 15 years were enrolled in a randomized, double-blind vitamin D supplementation trial, the Daily D Health Study, led by senior author Sacheck.

Baseline SSB intake was self-reported using the Block Food Frequency Questionnaire for Children, and fasting blood lipid concentrations were taken in 613 children and adolescents. Longitudinal measures were collected over 12 months in 380 of these youth.

Sixty-eight percent of the children were from low socioeconomic status (SES) households; almost half were overweight or obese; 59% were from non-white/Caucasian racial/ethnic groups.

Findings included:

At baseline, approximately 85% of children/adolescents reported consuming SSBs during the past week. 18% of the sample consumed 7 or more servings per week, or approximately one serving or more daily.
Greater SSB consumption was associated with older age, late puberty/post-puberty status and lower SES. SSB intake did not differ across racial and ethnic groups.
Several characteristics did differ by race and ethnicity: puberty status, SES, body mass index (BMI) and sedentary time, along with HDL-C and triglyceride concentrations.
Among 613 children/adolescents at baseline, higher triglycerides were linked with higher SSB intake, after accounting for demographic and behavioral factors, BMI, total calories and measures of diet quality.
Over the 12-month period, the mean SSB intake was not associated with lipid changes; however, the increase in HDL-C was greatest among children who decreased their intake by one or more 12-oz. servings of SSBs per week compared to those whose intake stayed the same or increased.
Greater SSB intake was associated with lower SES, higher total calorie consumption, lower fruit/vegetable intake, and a more sedentary lifestyle.

Source: The Journal of Nutrition
Published online ahead of print, doi: 10.3945/jn.115.212662
“Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Intake Is Positively Associated with Baseline Triglyceride Concentrations, and Changes in Intake Are Inversely Associated with HDL Cholesterol Increases over 12 Months in a Multi-Ethnic Sample of Children”
Authors: Maria I Van Rompay, et al

1 comment

Sugars must be IRMS-analyzed and declared as C§ or C4

Posted by Dr.med. Klaus Jürgen Seelig, 08 September 2015 - 15:41 GMT

This article bravorously showed like Hope A. JARES' previous work, that "energy-rich" feeds, foods and drinks are all based on the C4-sugar-based lot of ingredients which are disturbing "Mammalian Energy-Homoeostasis".
It is known that rats, mice, cows and camels react to CORN-feedlots likewise, i.e. increased triglyceridemia after C4-Glucose-feeding. That high-yield milk-producing Cows (5oo kg) can be switched to diabetic cows by application of one teaspoon-(5 ml) of CORN-Oil. Cats and dogs fed on such meat turn into diabetics.
The basic background is in the difference of glucose breakdown along the normal Glycolysis (Embden-Meyerhoff-path) and the path for breakdown of the “heavy parts” containing either ²D and /or 13C in their molecules (in-acceptable for ATP-armed enzymes), which go for breakdown along the Hatch-Slack-or Sedu-heptulose-path.
As this is normally about maximally 10% this is only of relevance, if the percentage reaches 25% or more.

Then the rule of "Fats are burnt in the Fire of Carbo-Hydrates" has to be specified to our modern rules:
"As heavy fats can only be burnt by 25% in the fire of light carbo-hydrates, the 65-to 75% have to be stored, expecting the proper fuel to burn them be offered by food or drink."

As there are mostly heavy lipids (from animal-proteins raised on CORN's "energy-rich" products) and heavy C4-or GMO-sugars used in our "modern and specially lucrative and amply available Foods for all" just undeclared for the minimal-difference (which biologically is of highest significance, declared dogmatically as GRAS) we have the "normal reaction of the Mammalian Metabolism" to the short-term palatable- but on long-term obeso-and diabetogenic food.
As the GMO-procedures bring into the old C3-plants (Potatoes, Sugar-beets, Soya, now also C4-Rice and draught-resistant wheat) the new C4-genes (causing the hybrid GMO-products to contain relatively more ²D, ³T, 13C ,14C and 17O and 18O.
These heavier Isotopes -having a higher Zero-Point-Energy- need more energy to be assimilated (UV-light-bound) and bring more Energy just like Diesel. (Energy-rich, but intolerable in benzene-Motors.)
But at every enzymatic level these products also n e e d more energy and a different enzyme at each level, which is the basic trigger for the signal: LACK of ENERGY - causing Insulin-demand and Overproduction as needed.
The new built Insulins, containing increased 13C and ²D and 14C and 18O are however inacceptable for the peripheral cells, so the "Insulin-Resistance" comes to be a rejecting mechanism for INSULIN built from altogether increased and too-long overfeeding with COMMODITY-Fodder on CORN-Basis.
This as Research is unwanted, as the Management of the disease is more lucrative than the Reversal of the DOGMATA about GMO-Practices which are Generally Regarded As Safe (GRAS) but are
no-where really and open declared by the Differences on product-declarations. So trusting consumers are misled about the real safety of the products neglecting the variation of Content of ORGANIC HEAVY ISOTOPES.

Unless Modern Medicine very soon takes up this hot Issue there will be a Food-induced Metabolic Syndrome Pandemia with - as Sir Martin Rees predicted 2004 already - > 1 million casualties due to such an inbuilt "Error of Metabolism".
Metabolic Syndrome :A Disease of Unknown Origin ?
Not so ? Strictly speaking, it's rather an introduced pathogenic factor supporting the planned exploitation by an envisioned profitable Management of induced Diseases.