New research from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore reveals a link between end stage renal disease and frequent drinking of diet sodas. In this general population study, people who drank more than seven diet soft drinks a week faced an 83% higher risk of ESRD compared to those who consumed less than one glass a week. Interestingly, researchers did not find a link between frequent diet soda consumption and earlier stages of kidney disease, nor did they find a link between sugar-sweetened sodas and ESRD. During their investigation, the scientists took into account those dietary factors which could cause kidney disease progression, including dietary acid load, diet quality, dietary sodium, dietary fructose, sugar-sweetened beverages, and dietary phosphorus. While risks were similar for people in different BMI categories, a significant association between diet soda and ESRD was seen only in people who were overweight or obese at baseline. More research is needed to explain these findings, which investigators believe could be due to problems with glucose regulation.
Sources:
ESRD Linked to Diet Soda Consumption, Renal and Urology News, October 26, 2016
Diet Soda Consumption and Risk of Incident End Stage Renal Disease, Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, October 2016