Two fizzy drinks a day can increase a woman’s risk of heart disease and diabetes and expand her waistline, even if she does not pack on the pounds. US scientists have found that middle-aged and older women who drank two or more beverages like carbonated sodas or flavoured waters with added sugar were nearly four times likely to develop high triglycerides (blood fats) when compared with women who drank less than one sugar-sweetened beverage a day. What’s more, women who drank more sodas a day had more belly fat, but not necessarily more weight. Belly fat poses greater health risks than fat in other areas of the body because it lies deep inside and negatively affects blood pressure, cholesterol and insulin production. The same associations were not observed in men.

Source: Down To Earth, December 2011