Sugar Sweetened Beverage Consumption among Adults with Gout or Type 2 Diabetes

PLoS One. 2015 May 15;10(5):e0125543. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0125543. eCollection 2015.

Abstract

Background: Current guidelines for the management of type 2 diabetes and gout recommend that people with these conditions limit their sugar sweetened beverage (SSB) intake. We examined self-reported SSB intake among New Zealand adults with gout or type 2 diabetes, including those on hemodialysis.

Method: 1023 adults with gout and 580 adults (including 206 receiving hemodialysis) with type 2 diabetes, participated in this study of between 2009 and 2012. Participants completed an interviewer-administered SSB intake question "how many sugar sweetened drinks (including fruit juice), but not including diet drinks, do you normally drink per day?" SSB consumption was recorded as a circled number 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, or >5, cans or large glasses (300 mL) per day.

Results: Consuming one or more SSB per day was reported by 64% (622/1023) of subjects with gout, 49% (176/374) with type 2 diabetes without dialysis, and 47% (96/206) with diabetes on dialysis. Consuming four or more SSBs per day was reported by 18% (179/1023), 9% (31/374) and 9% (18/206), respectively. Such high consumers of SSB were characterized after multivariable analysis to be more likely to be male (adjusted odds ratio (OR) 1.8; 95% confidence interval 1.1-2.9), younger in age (40 vs 65 years: 1.6; 1.1-2.3), current smoker (5.2; 2.7-10.1), obese (BMI 41 vs 26 kg/m(2): 1.4; 1-1.9), and report Māori (1.8; 1.2-2.8) or Pacific (1.6; 1.1-2.5) ancestry, compared to Caucasian. People with gout were more likely to report heavy SSB intake compared to people with diabetes (OR 2.4, 95% CI 1.5-3.9). Heavy SSB consumption reported by people with diabetes was similar if they did or did not require dialysis.

Conclusion: A high proportion of patients with gout and type 2 diabetes, including those on haemodialysis, are not responding to health messages to abstain from SSB consumption.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Beverages / adverse effects*
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / epidemiology*
  • Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / etiology
  • Female
  • Gout / epidemiology*
  • Gout / etiology
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Multivariate Analysis
  • New Zealand / epidemiology
  • Sweetening Agents / administration & dosage*
  • Sweetening Agents / adverse effects*

Substances

  • Sweetening Agents

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Health Research Council of New Zealand, Arthritis New Zealand, New Zealand Lottery Health and the University of Otago and Auckland.