Cola Consumption During Pregnancy May Up Risk of Obesity in Kids

The ongoing war against sugar suggests that soft drinks and energy drinks are a major contributor to obesity and a host of health issues. Last year, the World Health Organisation had urged countries to use stringent tax measure in order to curb the escalating sale of sugary drinks including fruit juices, colas and energy drinks. Experts also suggested that consumption of sugar masked in these beverages is one of the major factors contributing the escalating trend in the global cases of diabetes and obesity. Another study that was published last year in the journal JAMA Pediatrics, studied the harmful effects of cola consumption on pregnant women and on their unborn babies. It stated that sugary drinks consumption may transfer the risk of being obese to the newborn.

"The results provide the first human evidence that artificial sweetener consumption during pregnancy may increase the risk of early childhood overweight," said Meghan B Azad from the University of Manitoba, Canada, reported by IANS. The study analysed close to 3000 pregnant women along with their infants to study the link between sugary drink consumption during pregnancy and changes in infants' BMI in the first year of their birth.(Also Read: Is Your Kid Overweight? Obesity Can Expose Your Child to the Risk of Type-2 Diabetes)

"A pregnant woman must have a balanced diet regularly. Sugary drinks are laced with empty calories that have zero nutritive value; these are therefore not apt to be consumed during pregnancy. There are so many natural ways to create a range of refreshing and healthy beverages at home using some of your everyday ingredients," Dr. Rupali Datta, Former Chief Clinical Nutritionist at Fortis-Escorts Hospital, Delhi.

Another study recently published in the journal Physiology widened the expanse of the research to cover high-fructose diet. The study was carried out on mice module and concluded a strong link between mother's high sugar consumption and an increased BMI of the offspring. Regular consumption of a diet high in sugar also led to developing fatty liver in the newborns. It also had adverse effects on their metabolic health. Therefore, it was concluded that the newborns can thus be exposed to the risk of developing metabolic diseases in their later life. The study warrants further research to translate the finding on human subjects as the present study was carried out on mice.

Inputs from IANS