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 Researchers examined survey data on beverage consumption among 3,003
African-American men and women who were 54 years old on average and
didn't have kidney disease. After following participants for about 8
to 10 years, researchers found that 185 people, or 6 percent,
developed chronic kidney disease.
After researchers accounted for factors that can contribute to
kidney damage such as smoking, obesity, high blood pressure,
diabetes and inactivity, they found that drinking mainly sodas and
sweetened fruit drinks was associated with a 61 percent higher risk
of kidney disease.
When researchers looked at beverages individually, however, they
found soda was the main culprit.
"These findings add to the body of literature on the adverse health
effects of sugar-sweetened beverages and support recommendations to
avoid their consumption," said lead study author Casey Rebholz of
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore.
"It is widely recognized that sugar-sweetened beverages, such as
soda and sweetened fruit drinks, should be avoided in order to
reduce one's risk of developing chronic diseases such as obesity,
hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease," Rebholz said by
email.
However, the current findings offer fresh insight into which
beverage choices might prevent or delay the development of kidney
disease, Rebholz said.
Taken on its own, soda was associated with a 9 percent greater risk
of kidney disease, and higher intakes of tea and beer were also
associated with greater odds of kidney disease, the researchers
report in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of
Nephrology. No other individual types of beverages were associated
with kidney disease.
The researchers examined data from food frequency questionnaires
participants had completed at the start of the study between 2000
and 2004. Then they monitored people until 2013 to see who developed
kidney disease.
From the dietary questionnaires, researchers identified four
patterns of beverage consumption, labeling each one with the drink
categories the person consumed the most, followed by the next
most-consumed and the third most-consumed. For example, one pattern
was characterized by high consumption of citrus juice, other fruit
juice and vegetable juice, in that order.
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The pattern associated with higher kidney disease risk included
soda, sweetened fruit juices and water, in that order.
The connection between water and kidney damage in combination with
soda and sugary fruit drinks was a surprise, the study team writes.
It's possible, however, that participants counted flavored and
sweetened water or sports drinks as part of their water intake on
questionnaires, the authors note. This might mean the effect of
water more closely resembled other sugary drinks than it would if
people consumed only plain water.
Also, the researchers didn't know what brands of beverages people
consumed, making it impossible to determine the exact sugar or
calorie content.
"Multiple studies have shown that high consumption of sugar
sweetened beverages is associated with increased risk of developing
obesity, type 2 diabetes and gout," said Dr. Holly Kramer of Loyola
University Chicago.
"The association with kidney disease has not been consistently
demonstrated," Kramer, coauthor of an accompanying editorial, said
by email.
But people should still avoid eating or drinking excessive amounts
of sugar.
"High sugar of any kind can lead to weight gain and insulin
resistance and elevated blood pressure," Kramer said. "These factors
then put stress on the kidney and can accelerate loss of kidney
function over time."
SOURCE: https://bit.ly/2R3S1Fs and https://bit.ly/2Av5ID2 Clinical
Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, online December 27,
2018.
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