By Stephen T. Sinatra, M.D., F.A.C.C., F.A.C.N., C.N.S., C.B.T.
Soda weakens bones and makes women more prone to hip fractures when they are older, warns a 2014 Harvard University study. Researchers conducted an analysis of quadrennial questionnaires filled out over a 30 year period by more than 73,000 women. The women are part of the Harvard-based Nurses’ Health Study project, one of the world’s largest and oldest health and medical databases. This was the first study to show an association between soda consumption and increased risk of hip fractures, in this case for postmenopausal women. The risk was linked to all types of sodas: regular, diet, caffeinated, non-caffeinated, cola or non-cola. How big a risk? Each daily serving bumps up a woman’s risk by 14 percent, the researchers said.
Read the Harvard University Study here.
My Viewpoint: The price you pay for sweetened gratification is steep and sodas have zero nutritional value. Worse yet, they are destructive, as I point out in an article here. The researchers did not identify a clear-cut mechanism for the fracture risk, but there is increasing suspicion that increased intake of phosphorus, due to its proliferation as an additive in processed foods, and as phosphoric acid in sodas, may create an imbalance or deficit of calcium and magnesium, all key minerals for bone health.
What this Means to You: Previous research data has shown diminished bone mineral density or changes in biological markers of bone breakdown – warning signs of osteoporosis − due to excess soda consumption. Experts are alarmed at the increased vulnerability of women to osteoporosis and fractures because soda drinking at a young age far exceeds intake of dairy and other foods rich in vitamins and minerals, including calcium. In this study you now have an actual association with fracture risk. While not a cause and effect connection, it is evidence for caution and another reason to regard sodas and all their sugar, chemicals, and assorted junk, as dietary poison.
My Recommendation: Cut down! If possible, cut soda out altogether!!!!!!! You’ll be doing your bones and every other part of your body a big favor.
