A recent study has identified an association between consuming two soft drinks per day and an increased risk of hip fracture in postmenopausal women. Because the study authors cannot prove causation, however, they call for more research.
Osteoarthritis, which is characterized by progressively weak and brittle bones, predominantly affects older adults.
As Western populations age, therefore, the incidence of osteoporosis rises in step.
The condition affects around 200 million people trusted source
worldwide. As a person's bone mineral density becomes reduced, the risk of fractures increases.
In fact, according to the authors of the most recent study paper, globally, an osteoporotic fracture occurs every 3 seconds.
Although some of the primary risk factors for osteoporosis are unalterable, such as age and sex, some lifestyle habits also play a part.
One recent study in the journal Menopause focused on the impact of consuming soft drinks.
Why soda?
A number of older studies have observed a link between consuming soft drinks and reduced bone mineral density in teenage girls trusted Source and young womenTrusted Source.
However, other studies that specifically looked for an association between soda and osteoporosis have not identifiedTrusted Source a significant relationship. One study found linksTrusted Source between cola intake and osteoporosis but did not see the same effect in relation to other sodas.
Because of these discrepancies, the authors of the latest paper set out to study the links between soft drinks and bone mineral density in the spine and hip. They also looked for a relationship between soda intake and the risk of hip fracture over a 16 year follow-up period.
To investigate, the scientists took data from the Women's Health Initiative. This is an ongoing national study that involves 161,808 postmenopausal women. For the new analysis, the researchers used data from 72,342 of these participants.
As part of the study, the participants provided detailed health information and questionnaire data outlining lifestyle factors, including diet. Importantly, the diet questionnaire included questions about their intake of caffeinated and caffeine-free soft drinks.
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