Reviewed by nutritionist Karen Ansel, MS, RDN
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Key points
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Sweet drinks are the best source of added sugars in the American diet.
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Their sugar can increase triglycerides, which are blood fats, which increase the risk of heart disease.
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They can also increase blood sugar and abdominal fat and push through the possibilities.
As for heart health, most people focus on cholesterol. But triglycerides are just as important. Triglycerides are a type of fat in the blood that our bodies use for energy. High triglycerides can increase the risk of heart disease, leading to the accumulation of small, cholesterol -rich particles in the walls of the artery. This can cause inflammation and contribute to the formation of a plaque blocking the artery. Cutting fat may seem like an obvious first choice. However, one of the best bearers of high triglycerides is actually sweetened with sugar drinks such as soda, sweet tea, spiked coffee and sports drinks. The relationship is so strong that studies have found that people who drink only 12 ounces sweetened with sugar beverages a day are 48% more likely to have increased triglycerides.
That’s a lot! So, we talked to registered nutritionists to find out how cutting sugar-sweetened drinks can help with lower high triglycerides. Here’s what they told us, plus realistic strategies to improve your triglycerides for a healthier heart.
How sweetened sugar drinks can increase the risk of high triglycerides
They are chipping blood sugar and insulin levels
Studies have found that high -sugar high -level sugar is highly related to insulin resistance. This may sound that it is just a problem with blood sugar, but insulin resistance can also affect triglyceride levels. How so? While sugary drinks are boiled with sugar, they rarely contain fats, proteins or fiber to help slow digestion and digestion of glucose. As a result, glucose is rapidly absorbed into the blood, resulting in a rapid jump in blood sugar and insulin. Over time, this can lead to insulin resistance, which alters lipid metabolism, leading to high triglycerides, low HDL-cholesterol and elevated small, dense LDL-cholesterol particles. All this can lay the basis of heart disease.
They provide more sugar than your body can handle
Although triglycerides are a type of fat, they are mainly formed by eating excess carbohydrates and sugars. Think about what happens after drinking Cola’s 12-ounce. 37 grams of pure sugar is much more than your body can handle one meeting, especially when combined with other carbohydrates and sugars from food or breakfast. What does the body do with all this sugar? “Excess sugar is stored in the body as a glycogen. Once these stocks are full, our liver converts excess sugar into fatty acids and is combined with other molecules, they form triglycerides,” explains Melissa Jeger, LD, LD.
They often contain high -fructose corn syrup
Many sweetened drinks are made with high fructose corn syrup, which can be even more harmful to your blood fat and glucose levels than the sugar sugar. In one study, adults who drank three fructose-rich drinks daily for 10 weeks have higher levels of triglycerides-transport particles in their blood than volunteers who consume the same amount of drinks rich in glucose.
What exactly does fructose do so problematic? When consuming excessive amounts of fructose, such as HFCS sweetened, the liver converts all this fructose into fat through a process called de novo lipogenesis. This happens when there is more sugar than the liver can be stored as carbohydrates and is found more quickly with fructose than when consuming glucose.
They can increase fat in the abdomen
The deep fat of the abdomen, known as visceral fat, can write any problems for your health. Visceral fat releases blood fat quickly, while fat stored under the skin (such as in the hips or thighs) are stored and released much more slowly. This makes abdominal fats particularly harmful, increasing the risk of multiple metabolic health conditions, including increased triglycerides.
Studies have found that the larger additional sugar intake can be a powerful engine for the storage of visceral fat. For example, a study found that people who consumed many added sugars from sugar-sweetened drinks and other sources were 27% more likely to have obesity to the abdomen and were also 28% more prone to obese.
They are easy to consume excess
Sugar beverages are our best source of added sugars, delivering approximately 21% of our total sugar intake. One important reason: “It’s easy to exceed the calories of sweet drinks,” says Mandy Tyler, M.ed., Rd, CSSD. “Although they may have a taste of refreshment, they are reluctant to fill you.” Think about how you feel after eating a piece of cake against drinking a cup of sweet tea. Much more quickly – and easier – to drink this sugar in liquid form.
They replace the healthier options
“While our bodies can use some of the sugar in drinks for an immediate energy source, these drinks also deliver extra calories with little to no nutritional value,” Jeger says. Sweet drinks such as soda, sweet tea, energy drinks, sugar latte and even some fruit flavors often replace healthier options such as water, milk or nutrients rich.
Strategies to improve triglycerides
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Limit or avoid alcohol: “When you drink alcohol, your liver puts fat burning to process alcohol first,” explains Katie Shimmelpfening, Rd, LD. “This delay can lead to more fat, especially triglycerides, accumulate in your blood.”
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Take regular physical activity: Physical activity, especially aerobic exercises, helps reduce triglycerides by improving glucose and fat metabolism. You are not sure where to start? “Consider going for a walk during lunch, picking up the stairs, parking further at the grocery store, or enjoying a family walk after dinner,” proposes Taylor McCleland Newman, MS, RD, LD.
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Eat more fiber -rich foods: “Fiber helps with more triglycerides by slowing digestion and reducing fat and sugar absorption,” says Schimmelpfenning. Eating foods high in fiber with any meal and breakfast can help you hit the recommended 25 to 38 grams every day.
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Add in fatty fish: The American Cardiac Association recommends eating at least two 3-ounces of greasy fish such as salmon, mackerel, herring, anchovy and sardines a week. Studies have found that their long-chain omega-3 fats, EPA and DHA can help reduce triglycerides.
Bottom line
Drinking sugar -sweetened drinks can contribute to the main triglycerides. Excessive sugar can increase triglycerides by increasing blood sugar, insulin and fat from the abdomen and by providing more sugar and fructose than your body can effectively metabolize at one meeting. In addition, sweet drinks are easy to consume in excess and are usually replaced by asking alternatives. This does not mean that you can never enjoy a small cup of sweet tea or soda. But restricting sweet drinks combined with lifestyle changes, such as limiting or avoiding alcohol, exercising and eating more fatty fish and fiber -rich foods, can help you keep your triglycerides under control and protect your heart.
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