Abstract P283: Changes in Sugar-sweetened and Diet Soda Consumption in Relation to Weight and Waist Circumference Change in a Cohort of Mexican Women

Abstract

Introduction: Obesity is associated with an increased risk of many NCDs, including cardiovascular diseases. Consumption of soda has been linked to weight gain. Mexico is the second largest consumer of soda in the world and close to 70% of Mexican women are overweight or obese. Hypothesis: We hypothesize that increase consumption of sugar-sweetened soda willbe associated with increases in weight and weight circumference. Methods: We evaluated changes in soda consumption and short-term weight and waist circumference gain in the Mexican Techers Cohort. A subsample of 11,218 participants reported reproductive history, lifestyle factors, and medical conditions and responded to a 137-item semi-quantitative food-frequency questionnaire (FFQ) at baseline in 2006 and at follow-up in 2008. Participants self-reported height and weight and were provided a measuring tape and instructions to assess their waist circumference. We used multivariable linear regression to estimate the impact of 2-year change in sugar-sweetened and diet soda consumption on change in weight and waist circumference, adjusting for potential confounders. Results: In multivariable analyses, each additional sugar-sweetened soda serving/day was associated with 0.95 kg (95% CI 0.71, 1.20) increase in weight and 0.94 cm (95% CI 0.48, 1.39) increase in waist circumference over the two-year study period. Changes in diet soda consumption were not associated with changes in weight or waist circumference. Conclusions: An increase in sugar-sweetened soda consumption was associated to short-term weight gain in Mexican women. Accumulated over time, even modest weight gain may have important health implications. Our results underscore the urgent need to rapidly reduce sugar-sweetened beverage consumption in this population.