The Study
Sugar-sweetened beverage consumption is associated with abdominal fat partitioning in healthy adults.
This study looked at a group of people and noticed that those who drank more sugary sodas also tended to have more fat around their organs. But it didn't watch them over time to see if drinking soda made the fat grow—it just took a snapshot. So we can't say soda caused the fat, just that they often went together.
Analysis score
Maximum 44 for a cross-sectional study.
Where the score came from
Drinking sugary sodas every day might make your body store more fat deep inside your belly and less fat just under your skin.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 544 / 100
Quality score
Snapshots of a population at a single point in time, or descriptions of small groups. Can identify correlations and prevalence, but cannot determine cause and effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes — more deep belly fat is linked to higher risk of diabetes and heart disease, even if overall weight is normal.
- 2People who drank one or more sugary sodas daily had 10% more deep belly fat and a 15% higher ratio of deep belly fat to under-skin fat than people who didn't drink them.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
The Journal of nutrition
Year
2014
Authors
Jiantao Ma, M. Sloan, C. Fox, U. Hoffmann, Caren E. Smith, E. Saltzman, G. Rogers, P. Jacques, N. McKeown
Related Content
Claims (8)
Consuming large amounts of fructose is linked to higher levels of fat around internal organs and reduced ability to regulate blood sugar.
Middle-aged adults who drink more sugar-sweetened beverages have less fat stored under the skin in the abdominal area, even when accounting for fat around internal organs.
Middle-aged adults who drink sugar-sweetened beverages daily have 10% more fat around their internal organs and a 15% higher ratio of visceral fat to subcutaneous fat compared to those who do not, even when accounting for total calories, physical activity, and overall diet quality.
Middle-aged adults who drink sugar-sweetened beverages have a higher proportion of fat stored around internal organs compared to fat under the skin, even when their total body weight is the same as others.
People who drink sugar-sweetened beverages have more visceral fat than expected based on their subcutaneous fat and other lifestyle factors like diet, exercise, smoking, and alcohol use.
Drinking sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with a higher proportion of fat stored around internal organs compared to fat stored under the skin.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.