Coke Rots Your Bones

Drinking cola may increase risk to women's bones. Women who drink cola may be increasing their risk for low bone mineral density linked to osteoporosis, researchers say.

A study of 2,500 people concluded that drinking the carbonated beverages was linked with low bone mineral density in three different hip sites in women, regardless of age, menopausal status, calcium and vitamin D intake and use of cigarettes or alcohol.

Similar results were seen for diet pop and less strongly for decaffeinated pop.

In men, there was no link with lower bone mineral density at the hip, and both sexes showed no link for the spine.

The report by Katherine Tucker, director of the epidemiology and dietary assessment program at Tufts University in Boston, and her colleagues, appeared in this week's issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

"The more cola that women drank, the lower their bone mineral density," Tucker said in a release.

"There is no concrete evidence that an occasional cola will harm the bones. However, women concerned about osteoporosis may want to steer away from frequent consumption of cola until further studies are conducted." continue...