Healthy young adults who consumed drinks sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup for just two weeks showed increases in three key risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
The results from a recent study are the first to demonstrate a direct, dose-dependent relationship between the amount of added sugar consumed in sweetened beverages and increases in specific risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
The findings reinforce evidence from an earlier epidemiological study that showed the risk of death from cardiovascular disease—the leading cause of death in the United States and around the world—increases as the amount of added sugar consumed increases.
“These findings clearly indicate that humans are acutely sensitive to the harmful effects of excess dietary sugar over a broad range of consumption levels,” said Kimber Stanhope, a research scientist at the University of California–Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine.
