Eating foods with different sugar impacts doesn't seem to reliably change heart disease risk markers in overweight men after just four weeks—so short-term diet changes might not be enough to make a difference.

If you eat different kinds of food for four weeks—some high in sugar, some low—but everything else stays the same, your body’s insulin response, inflammation, and blood clotting don’t consistently change if you’re overweight or obese.

Eating either high-sugar or low-sugar carbs for four weeks doesn’t reliably change insulin response, swelling, or blood clotting in overweight or obese men—even though the types of carbs were very different.

Eating lots of sugary and starchy foods seems to raise the risk of heart disease much more for women than for men, which might mean men and women’s bodies react differently to these foods.

Eating lots of sugary and starchy foods seems to raise the risk of heart disease much more for women than for men, which might mean men and women’s bodies react differently to these foods.

Eating a lot of foods that spike your blood sugar quickly may raise your chance of getting heart disease—even if you’re otherwise healthy or don’t smoke or have high blood pressure.