US Study Links Childhood Sugary‑Drink Consumption to Higher Adult Hypertension Risk

A 25‑year prospective study of more than 25,000 U.S. children and adolescents aged 9‑16, published in the journal *Circulation* of the American Heart Association, found that regular intake of sugary drinks and fruit juices in youth is associated with a markedly higher risk of developing high blood pressure later in life.

Participants who drank two or more servings of sugary beverages per day had a 52 % greater chance of hypertension compared with those consuming less than three servings per week. Each daily serving of soda increased risk by 23 % and sports drinks by 36 %. Consuming at least 1.5 cups of fruit juice daily was linked to a 35 % higher risk. Substituting one sugary drink serving with whole fruit lowered risk by 22 %; replacing fruit juice with whole fruit reduced risk by 19 %; and switching to water or milk cut risk by up to 13 %.

The observational study, led by Basanti Malik of the University of Toronto and collaborators at Harvard, notes that findings are limited to a predominantly white, non‑Hispanic U.S. cohort and cannot establish causality. The American Heart Association recommends policies such as sugary‑drink taxes, stricter school‑meal nutrition standards, and enhanced public education to curb consumption.