A massive study on sugar and type 2 diabetes found that it’s far healthier to eat your sugar than to drink it.
Researchers from Brigham Young University (BYU) in Utah, along with academics in Germany, analyzed data from 29 studies of over 800,000 people across the U.S., Europe, Asia, Australia and Latin America.
The study, published in the journal Advances in Nutrition in May, found that sugar consumed in beverages like soda and fruit juice was consistently linked to a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes (T2D), while sugar eaten in whole foods wasn’t.
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“Most recommendations lump all sugars together or focus broadly on added sugars,” Karen Della Corte, lead author and BYU nutritional science professor, told Fox News Digital.
“But our research shows that the health impact of sugar depends greatly on how it’s consumed.”
The data showed that each daily 12-ounce serving of sugar-sweetened beverages like soda or energy drinks increased diabetes risk by 25%, while an 8-ounce serving of fruit juice – including 100% fruit juice, nectars and juice drinks – raised it by 5%.
The risks are relative, however — meaning that if someone has a 10% chance of developing type 2 diabetes, drinking four sodas a day could raise that risk to about 20%, not 100%.
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Meanwhile, natural sugars in whole foods like fruit – or even some added sugar in other fiber-rich foods – were not linked to an increased risk and, in some cases, may even be protective.
The difference is that sugary drinks deliver large amounts of rapidly absorbed sugar with no fiber, protein or fat to slow digestion, overwhelming the body’s ability to manage blood glucose and insulin, Della Corte said.
Sugars in whole foods, however, are surrounded by fiber, protein and healthy fats that slow down digestion and help the body manage blood sugar.
While the study is observational and can’t prove sugary drinks cause type 2 diabetes, it provides strong evidence that the relationship isn’t simply due to broader unhealthy habits — the drinks pose an independent risk.
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“Lifestyle behaviors always play a role in chronic disease risk, but our analysis shows that the link between sugary drinks and type 2 diabetes persists independent of other factors like physical activity, weight status or smoking,” Della Corte said.
“Sugary drinks appear to be uniquely harmful on their own.”
Over 38 million Americans – about 12% of the U.S. population – have diabetes, approximately 90% to 95% of which are type 2, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The prevalence of diabetes has risen from 9.7% to 14.3% over the past 20 years, per the agency.
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Dietary guidelines should focus not just on the amount of sugar consumed but how it’s eaten, the researchers said.
Future studies are also needed to understand how the form and context of sugar affect metabolism and insulin response, Della Corte added, and long-term controlled trials on how the liver processes sugar in different foods would help clarify its impact on type 2 diabetes risk.
“There is room for sugar in the human diet, and our study showed that moderate amounts can even be protective,” she said. “It’s the source form and context that matter most.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the Washington, D.C.-based American Beverage Association for comment.