Swapping soda for water is a key to stay fit, says a study
Replacing one little calorie-laden sugary soda with water may significantly help reduce body weight as well as improve overall health, says a study. The findings showed that consuming additional calories from sugary beverages like soda, energy drinks, and sweetened coffee can increase risk of weight gain and obesity, as well as Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
“Regardless of how many servings of sugar-sweetened beverages you consume, replacing even just one serving can be of benefit,” said Kiyah J. Duffey from Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg in US. We found that people who consumed one serving of sugar-sweetened beverages per day, replacing that drink with water lowered the per cent of calories coming from drinks from 17 to 11 per cent,” Duffey added.
For their study, Duffey and colleagues set out to investigate how switching an 8-ounce sugar-sweetened beverage with an 8-ounce serving of water impacts calorie intake and overall health.
The researchers analyzed data from the 2007-2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES), which involved more than 19,000 American adults aged 19 and older.
Specifically, they looked at how swapping sugary drinks for water affected participants’ calorie intake, Healthy Beverage Index (HBI) scores – a system developed by Virginia Tech researchers to assess how certain beverages affect health – and obesity prevalence.
The team found that adults who swapped a single 8-ounce sugary drink – including soda, energy drinks, and sugar-sweetened coffee – for an 8-ounce serving of water reduced their total percentage of calories from drinks from 17 percent to 11 percent.
“Even those who consumed more sugary drinks per day could still benefit from water replacement, dropping the amount of calories coming from beverages to less than 25 percent of their daily caloric intake,” notes Duffey.
Higher calorie drinks, such as sweetened soda and high-fat milk, have been associated with diets rich in red and processed meats, refined grains, sweets, and starch, according to a 2015 review study.
Lower-calorie drinks, such as water and unsweetened coffee and tea, were associated with alternative diets rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, fish, and poultry.
Diet drinks are also healthier alternatives to sugary drinks, explained Duffey, but other research has shown that people who drink water over low-calorie alternatives still tend to eat more fruits and vegetables, have lowered blood sugar, and are better hydrated.
The paper was published in the journal Nutrients.
