Atrial fibrillation risk associated with consumption of sweetened drinks

Researchers reviewed data from dietary questionnaires and genetic data for more than 200,000 adults not having atrial fibrillation between 2006 and 2010. During the nearly 10-year follow-up period, there were 9,362 cases of atrial fibrillation among the study participants.

The analysis revealed that consuming more than 2L per week of artificially sweetened beverages was associated with a 20% increased risk of atrial fibrillation while drinking the same amount of sugar-sweetened beverages was linked to a 10% increased risk. However, consuming 1L or less of pure fruit juice per week was associated with an 8% lower risk. Factors such as gender, age, body mass index, diabetes prevalence, and smoking status influenced the association between beverage consumption and atrial fibrillation risk.

“Although the mechanisms linking sweetened beverages and atrial fibrillation risk are still unclear, there are several possible explanations, including insulin resistance and the body’s response to different sweeteners,” Wang said. “Artificial sweeteners in food and beverages mainly include sucralose, aspartame, saccharin and acesulfame.”

“These novel findings on the relationships among atrial fibrillation risk and sugar- and artificially sweetened beverages and pure juice may prompt the development of new prevention strategies by considering decreasing sweetened drinks to help improve heart health,” concluded Wang.

Reference: Ying Sun, Bowei Yu, Yuefeng Yu, Bin Wang, Xiao Tan, Yingli Lu, Yu Wang, Kun Zhang and Ningjian Wang; Journal: Circulation Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology; DOI: 10.1161/CIRCEP.123.012145