BUFFALO, N.Y. — Do you have a sweet tooth? Do you often quench that craving with sweetened drinks? A recent study published in the American Heart Association’s peer-reviewed journal "Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology" found that drinking sugar or artificially sweetened beverages is associated with an increased risk of irregular heart rhythm.
“Back in February of 2011,” said Dennis Eldredge, who used to have atrial fibrillation. “Actually, I really went into AFib, had really kind of a bad case of it where I actually thought I was going to ... I couldn't breathe. [They] took me to the hospital, the whole nine yards.”
That day lives in Dennis’ memories because it was Valentine’s Day. He’s had many more episodes since then.
“The only way I can tell is if it feels like there's a heart ... your heart feels like there's a fish flopping around in there," he said. It just, it's beating so irregularly. All of the chambers are not built the way they're supposed to.”
A study published in "Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology" found that there was a 20% increased risk of AFib in people who said they drank more than two liters of artificially sweetened beverages per week. The study also found a 10% increased risk among participants who said they drank two liters per week or more of sugar-sweetened beverages.
“I think, you know, these kinds of studies have to be interpreted a little bit of caution because association does not necessarily mean causality,” said Dr. Vijay Iyer, chief of cardiology at the University of Buffalo’s Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. “And I think we have to differentiate between the association and causality.”
According to Dr. Iyer, there is data that shows that aspartame, often found in diet soda, can be an excitatory chemical for the heart. It could cause arrhythmias, but it doesn’t necessarily mean it causes AFib because there are other things that could be at play as well.
“I think the common risk factors for atrial fibrillation are known to be high blood pressure, obesity and sleep apnea,” Iyer said.
Iyer says atrial fibrillation can be managed easily with medical therapy.
“For people who are above the age of 65 or have other risk factors, in addition to controlling the rate, they may need blood thinners to prevent strokes,” he said. “Atrial fibrillation can also be treated with new therapies, which are called ablative therapies.”
Dennis had three ablation surgeries over time. After the last ablation surgery, along with another heart surgery, he reports no symptoms from AFib. He’s very grateful to his doctors for what they’ve done for him.
“I’m back to a normal life now,” Dennis said. “I’m not going to go out and jog three miles, but I don’t know how many 73-year-olds do that anyway.”
To learn more about AFib and artificially sweetened drinks, click here.