Consuming No Sugar at All Could Potentially Be Worse for You Than Drinking Sugary Drinks, New Study Finds

A cheeky little slice of cake here, a cookie there, or a nibble of chocolate every once in a while isn’t the worst thing in the world. But according to new research, the buck stops at sugary drinks. 

Last week, researchers published a new report titled “Added sugar intake and its associations with incidence of seven different cardiovascular diseases” in the journal Frontiers in Public Health. The research surveyed 69,705 Swedish men and women, following their diet and lifestyle habits between 1997 and 2009, specifically tracking three classes of sugar: Sugar toppings like honey, sweets like pastries, and sweetened beverages like soda. It also tracked participants’ incidences of seven different cardiovascular diseases, including events like strokes and heart attacks, all to determine “the associations between intake of added sugar and various sugar-sweetened foods and beverages and risk of seven cardiovascular diseases,” the study explained. And it found some surprising results.

According to the researchers, there is a general association between added sugar intake and cardiovascular diseases; however, the outcomes vary by the source of added sugar. And the worst offender of all is added sugar in sweetened beverages. 

“There were statistically significant linear associations between total added sugar intake and ischemic stroke and abdominal aortic aneurysm,” the researchers noted in their results. “High intake of sweetened beverages was associated with higher risk for most of the studied outcomes, for which positive linear associations were found.” 

However, it’s important to note the other end of the spectrum didn’t fare much better. According to the findings, “a low intake of treats was associated with a higher risk of all the studied outcomes.” Thus, those who consumed zero sweets had the highest risk of cardiovascular events, and consuming occasional treats was associated with better outcomes than no treats at all. 

“The most striking finding from our study is the divergent relationship between different sources of added sugar and cardiovascular disease risk,” Suzanne Janzi, PhD candidate at Lund University and corresponding author of the article in Frontiers in Public Health, shared in a statement. “This surprising contrast highlights the importance of considering not just the amount of sugar consumed, but its source and context.”

As the team explained, liquid sugars — aka those found in sodas and other added-sugar beverages — typically do not make us feel full very quickly, and this, Janzi added, could lead people to overconsume the product. “Context also matters — treats are often enjoyed in social settings or special occasions, while sweetened beverages might be consumed more regularly,” Janzi said. 

But what about those who eat very little added sugar at all? How did they end up with the short end of the stick?

“This might reflect underlying dietary behaviors — individuals consuming very little sugar might have very restrictive diets or might be limiting sugar due to pre-existing health conditions,” Janzi noted.

However, Janzi did make a very important caveat about all these points. This study is observational in nature, with self-reported data. Sometimes, humans can be incredibly unreliable when self-reporting data. That means the findings can suggest results but cannot “establish causation.” Still, enough of a pattern has emerged that they can make suggestions like “extremely low sugar intake may not be necessary or beneficial for cardiovascular health.”

Janzi also noted that this study should only be used as the beginning of the research, not the end. “Our findings are based on a Swedish population, which may have dietary habits and lifestyle factors that differ from those in other populations,” the researcher stated. “Particularly relevant in this context is the social custom of ‘fika’ — regular coffee and pastry breaks that are deeply embedded in Swedish culture. These results may not directly translate to other populations with different dietary cultures.” But hey, if this is the inspiration you need to gather your friends for a chit-chat and a cookie, then by all means, do it. Just try to keep it to under six to nine teaspoons of sugar per day, per the American Heart Association’s recommendations.