Drinking sugar-sweetened beverages promotes cell aging leading to cardiometabolic disease 喝含糖飲料會促進細胞衰老，從而導致心臟代謝疾病

More sugar means shorter telomere length, faster aging, and higher risk of diseases

Monday 04/05/2021 (jkzx.com) — Sugar is known as a the primary fuel for cancer growth. But if for healthy men and women, sugar can promote human aging increasing risk of cardiometabolic disease among other things, according to a study published in the American Journal of Public Health in 2014.

The study conducted by Cindy W. Leung at the University of California, San Francisco and colleagues shows that men and women who drank sugar-sweetened beverages have shorter leukocyte telomere length. The length of telomeres indicates the lifespan an individual can have. After each cell cycle, the telomere length is shortened by losing some portion of the DNA.

Dr. Leung et al. analyzed data on the 24-hour consumed amounts of sugar sweetened beverages, diet soda, and fruit juice from a cohort of 5308 men and women aged 20 to 65 years who were enrolled in the 1999 to 2002 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys and then tried to associate it to the telomere length.

They found drinking sugar sweetened soda linked to shortened telomere length while consumption of fruit juice is correlated to a slightly longer leukocyte telomere length, and diet soda does not seem to have an impact on the telomere length.

The researcher concluded that “regular consumption of sugar-sweetened sodas might influence metabolic disease development through accelerated cell aging.”

Another study published in Childhood Obesity in 2018 finds a similar association between sugar sweetened beverages and increased aging in 3-year olds and preschool children.

This study conducted by Janet Wojcicki also from University of California, San Francisco and colleagues also measured leukocyte telomere length in children whose consumption of sugar sweetened beverages was surveyed.

The association was the same as the study by Leung et al. which suggests that consumption of sugar sweetened drinks can promote aging and have a negative impact on the immunity in children even before children develop obesity, the researchers reported.

How does sugar damage your cells?

Sugars can damage all sorts of cells by reacting with protein and other nitrogen containing compounds. This reaction is commonly known as browning reactions/Maillard reaction to form advanced glycation products. Not all types of sugar are equally damaging. High fructose corn syrup/honey can be more reactive than common table sugar/cane sugar/beet sugar/maltodextrin/corn syrup solids.

How can you avoid sugar?

You need to know your enemies before you do anything else. Sugar comes in 50 different forms. The most common sugars or sugary products include cane sugar, beet sugar, date sugar, raw sugar, corn syrup solids, brown sugar, maltodextrin, honey, maple syrup, high fructose corn syrup. Fruit juices can also be risky as the juice is kind of purified and stripped of other nutrients that would otherwise provide some protection against sugar-induced damage to cells.

What other risk factor can also cause cellular damage?

Sugar is only one factor that causes cellular damage, shorten telomere length, promote aging, increase risk of various chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, dementia. Processed foods that lack many nutrients can also promote aging. Normally, raw plant-based diet that is full of vegetables and legumes can protect against some damage induced by the sugar-protein reaction because of their antioxidant properties. Dietary proteins can help mitigate the damage by sacrificing themselves to save proteins/enzymes and other endogenously produced cellular components. This is how foods can affect a person’s aging process and his lifespan.

Other lifestyle parameters can also affect the telomere length and aging speed. In fact, anything such as psychological stress and behavioral factors that influence inflammation, oxidative stress, and stress hormones can affect the tear and wear of the telomere, thus its length, and overall aging process. (Dr. Lu)