Eating lots of foods that spike your blood sugar quickly may raise your chances of developing heart disease later on, even if you don’t smoke, aren’t overweight, or don’t have diabetes — especially if you’re a middle-aged woman in the US.

Women in their 40s to 60s who eat a lot of sugary and refined carbs are almost twice as likely to develop heart disease as those who eat fewer of these foods.

Women in their 40s to 60s who eat a lot of foods that spike blood sugar quickly—like white bread, sugary snacks, and refined carbs—are more likely to develop heart disease than those who eat fewer of these foods, with the biggest eaters having almost twice the risk.

Women who eat a lot of foods that spike blood sugar quickly may be 69% more likely to develop heart disease, but this doesn’t seem to be true for men.

Eating a lot of sugary and refined carbs like white bread and soda may raise a woman’s chance of getting heart disease by almost double, even if she doesn’t have other common risk factors like high blood pressure or smoking.

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.