Medical studies suggest that people should quit sugary drinks, which can lead to a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer.
UK-based journal The BMJ last month published a research paper, which linked the consumption of sweetened drinks to cancer.
The results show that a 100ml per day increase in the consumption of sugary drinks was associated with an 18 percent increased risk of cancer and a 22 percent increased risk of breast cancer, the study found.
Photo: Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
Academia Sinica researchers and National Taiwan University Hospital physicians in March also reported an association between pancreatic cancer and abnormal sugar metabolism.
Pancreatic cells can be damaged when a person’s blood sugar concentration is high, the team said, advising people to quit drinking sugary beverages.
Drinking sugary beverages for a long period could also cause tooth decay, metabolic disorders and obesity, the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s Health Promotion Administration (HPA) said.
Nearly 50 percent of overweight children are likely to become obese when they are adults, making them susceptible to diabetes, high blood pressure, hyperuricemia, osteoarthritis and cardiovascular disease, the HPA said.
Studies have also found that beverage stores use high-fructose corn syrup, which is artificially synthesized and cheaper, but consumption of it could result in heart disease, high blood fat, a fatty liver, gout, dementia and cancer, with children and teenagers at a higher risk of heart disease.
Taiwan’s signature drink, bubble tea, also called pearl tea (珍珠奶茶), often contains 440 to 550 calories, and those drinking a cup of pearl tea every day could gain 3.4kg to 4.3kg in two months, the HPA said.
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