While there have been reports that sugary drinks influence your risk for kidney disease, previous studies on the matter haven’t been consistent. A 2019 study in the Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology analyzed the association between beverage consumption patterns and subsequent risk of kidney disease.*

What they did

• Researchers used participants of the Jackson Heart Study, a group of 3,003 black men and women in Jackson, Mississippi.
• Beverage consumption was assessed using a food frequency questionnaire. 
• The association between the consumption of each beverage, beverage patterns, and incidence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) was established using statistical methods.
• The following additional factors were taken into account for each of the participants when analyzing the results: total energy intake, age, sex, education, body mass index, smoking, physical activity, hypertension, diabetes, HDL (high-density lipoprotein) cholesterol, LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol, history of cardiovascular disease, and baseline eGFR.

What they found

• Of the total group, 185 people (6%) of the participants developed CKD over an average timespan of eight years.
• Of those 185 people, 64% of them were women, and the mean age was 54.
• Analysis of beverage patterns showed that consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages was associated with a considerably higher risk of CKD. 

To understand this association further, sugary drinks consumed regularly over an extended period of time can result in weight gain and the development of obesity. Obesity, in turn, is a risk factor for chronic diseases, such as CKD, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. 

In conclusion, it is recommendable to reduce the consumption of this type of sugar-sweetened beverage. Additional research is necessary to further encourage a public health intervention and an improvement in dietary guidelines.

*Rebholz, C.M., Young, B.A., Katz, R., Tucker, K.L., et al. (2019, Jan. 7). “Patterns of Beverages Consumed and Risk of Incident Kidney Disease.” Clinical Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.