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.
Evidence from Studies
Supporting (3)
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This study followed thousands of women for 10 years and found that those who ate a lot of sugary and refined carbs (like white bread and soda) had almost double the risk of heart disease, even after accounting for other risk factors like smoking or weight — exactly what the claim says.
This study followed thousands of women for 10 years and found that those who ate lots of sugary and refined carbs had almost double the risk of heart disease, even after accounting for other risk factors like smoking or weight — exactly what the claim says.
Meta-analysis of dietary glycemic load and glycemic index in relation to risk of coronary heart disease.
This study found that women who ate a lot of foods that spike blood sugar (like white bread and sugary snacks) had a much higher chance of heart disease than those who ate less of them — which matches the claim, even if the exact number is a bit different.
Contradicting (1)
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This study looked at whether sugary and refined-carb diets cause heart failure, but the claim is about heart disease — two different heart problems. So, it doesn’t tell us if the claim is right or wrong.
Gold Standard Evidence Needed
According to GRADE and EBM methodology, here is what ideal scientific evidence would look like to definitively prove or disprove this specific claim, ordered from strongest to weakest evidence.