Conexiant
Login
  • Corneal Physician
  • Glaucoma Physician
  • New Retinal Physician
  • Ophthalmology Management
  • Ophthalmic Professional
  • Presbyopia Physician
  • Retinal Physician
The Ophthalmologist
  • Explore

    Explore

    • Latest
    • Insights
    • Case Studies
    • Opinion & Personal Narratives
    • Research & Innovations
    • Product Profiles

    Featured Topics

    • Anterior Segment
    • Glaucoma
    • Retina

    Issues

    • Latest Issue
    • Archive
  • Subspecialties
    • Cataract
    • Cornea
    • Glaucoma
    • Neuro-ophthalmology
    • Oculoplastics
    • Optometry
    • Pediatric
    • Retina
  • Business

    Business & Profession

    • Professional Development
    • Business and Entrepreneurship
    • Practice Management
    • Health Economics & Policy
  • Training & Education

    Career Development

    • Professional Development
    • Career Pathways

    Events

    • Webinars
    • Live Events
  • Events
    • Live Events
    • Webinars
  • Community

    People & Profiles

    • Power List
    • Voices in the Community
    • Authors & Contributors
  • Multimedia
    • Video
    • Podcasts
Subscribe
Subscribe

False

Advertisement
The Ophthalmologist / Issues / 2018 / Feb / Ditch the Diet… Drinks
Retina

Ditch the Diet… Drinks

Research finds a link between consumption of low-calorie beverages and proliferative diabetic retinopathy

By Ruth Steer 2/25/2018 1 min read

Share

From ginger beer to cola, many people enjoy a refreshing soft drink. Obesity and tooth decay are well-known as potential risks of consuming sugary beverages, but what about their artificially-sweetened, lower-calorie cousins? Evidence is building around the theory that such drinks may not circumvent all potential health issues. And now, a team from the Singapore Eye Research Institute and Centre for Eye Research Australia has found that consumption of diet drinks may be linked with diabetic retinopathy (DR) (1). In a cohort of 609 patients with diabetes, high levels of diet soft drink consumption (over four cans per week) was independently associated with an increased likelihood of having proliferative DR (odds ratio, 2.51; 95% CI, 1.05–5.98) when compared with no consumption. Ecosse Lamoureux, senior author of the study, tells us more.

The results seem somewhat surprising...

The association of diet soft drink consumption with DR was certainly unexpected, and prospective studies are needed to confirm this cross-sectional phenomenon. We were also surprised by the differential impact that diet and regular soft drinks had on DR risk. However, as few individuals with diabetes in our sample consumed regular soft drinks, the lack of an association could be due to inadequate statistical power; this caveat was noted in our manuscript and caution is needed when interpreting our results.

What impact could your findings have?

Our findings indicate that daily consumption of low-calorie soft drinks may be associated with DR in people with diabetes. And although more research is needed, doctors could advise patients with diabetes to reduce or eliminate the consumption of diet soft drinks. Such advice could be important for individuals with existing DR to prevent disease progression to vision-threatening stages. More importantly, our results may inform future dietary management plans for individuals with no or existing DR.

Next steps?

Given the cross-sectional nature of our study, we are unable to determine causality. Therefore, we are planning to undertake a longitudinal study, using prospectively collected dietary data to determine whether diet soft drinks are indeed unhealthy substitutes for regular soft drinks in patients with diabetes, so as best to inform the clinical management guidelines for DR.

References

  1. EK Fenwick et al., “Diet soft drink is associated with increased odds of proliferative diabetic retinopathy”, Clin Exp Ophthalmol, [Epub ahead of print], (2018). PMID: 29360260.

About the Author(s)

Ruth Steer

More Articles by Ruth Steer

Related Content

Newsletters

Receive the latest Ophthalmology news, personalities, education, and career development – weekly to your inbox.

Newsletter Signup Image

False

Advertisement

False

Advertisement

Explore More in Ophthalmology

Dive deeper into the world of Ophthalmology. Explore the latest articles, case studies, expert insights, and groundbreaking research.

False

Advertisement
The Ophthalmologist
Subscribe

About

  • About Us
  • Work at Conexiant Europe
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Advertise With Us
  • Contact Us

Copyright © 2025 Texere Publishing Limited (trading as Conexiant), with registered number 08113419 whose registered office is at Booths No. 1, Booths Park, Chelford Road, Knutsford, England, WA16 8GS.

Disclaimer

The Ophthalmologist website is intended solely for the eyes of healthcare professionals. Please confirm below: