Cola drinks linked to brittlebone disease

RECENT studies have linked
the consumption of cola
drinks to higher risk of developing brittle
bone disease (osteoporosis).
According to a new study by Tufts
University, United States of America (U.S.A.)
researchers, women of all ages who
regularly drink cola run a much higher risk
of developing the brittle bones disease
osteoporosis than women who do not drink
cola.
The study, published in the American
Journal of Clinical Nutrition, examined 2,500
men and women and found that regardless
of age and calcium intake, the women who
regularly drank cola experienced loss of
bone mineral density. The bone loss was
not observed in men or in women who
drank non-cola carbonated beverages.
The researchers gave the study participants
a questionnaire on their diets, and
measured bone density at the spine and in
three different locations on the hips.
Women who drank four or more colas per
week had lower bone mineral density at the
three hip locations, but did not experience
bone mineral density loss at the spine.
The study disposed of the idea that women
who drink cola regularly can offset bone
mineral density loss by drinking milk or
taking calcium supplements. The
researchers found that milk consumption
was the same among women who drank
cola regularly and those who did not. Only
those who drank massive amounts of cola
experienced some benefit from milk
consumption.
The researchers are uncertain what
ingredient in cola affects women ’s bone
health, but they hypothesise that
phosphoric acid may turn the blood too
acidic, which causes the body to take
calcium from the bones to balance out the
acidity.