Sugary drinks are doing more than just satisfying a sweet tooth; they are fueling a global health crisis. A major new global study has linked the consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks—like sodas, sweetened juices, and energy drinks—to widespread cases of type 2 diabetes and heart disease in people from 184 countries. The motivation behind this work comes from the steady rise in sugary drink intake around the world and its clear link to long-term illnesses. Although the health effects of these beverages have been known for some time, this is the most complete picture yet of how much they affect people across different backgrounds and regions.
Dr. Laura Lara and Professor Dariush Mozaffarian from Tufts University led this international research effort. Their results are published in the medical journal Nature Medicine. The researchers used detailed food and drink survey data from the Global Dietary Database, a large collection of nutrition data from around the world, along with advanced statistical techniques, meaning methods that use math to carefully estimate outcomes, to estimate how many new cases of type 2 diabetes and heart disease were linked to sugary drink consumption in both 1990 and 2020. They also looked at differences based on age, gender, level of education, and whether people lived in cities or rural areas.
In 2020 alone, sugary drinks were linked to a large share of new cases of type 2 diabetes and heart disease around the world. That means these drinks were a major factor behind about one in ten new diabetes diagnoses and one in thirty new cases of heart disease that year. Men, younger adults, and people living in cities were especially affected. The highest consumption levels were seen in Latin America, the Caribbean, and sub-Saharan Africa—regions where sugary drinks were tied to nearly a quarter of all new diabetes cases. In some countries, sugary drinks were behind nearly half of new diabetes diagnoses.
Dr. Laura and Professor Mozaffarian found that sub-Saharan Africa saw the fastest growth in health problems caused by sugary drinks between 1990 and 2020. This increase was linked to more people living in cities and getting more education, which are usually signs of better health. “Our study highlights the countries and subpopulations—smaller specific groups within the population—most affected by diseases linked to sugary drink consumption, helping guide better policies and actions to lower these health risks around the world,” said Professor Mozaffarian.
This global snapshot also reveals a major inequality: while richer countries have seen small improvements in reducing the harms from sugary drinks—thanks to falling consumption and strong health policies—developing countries are seeing the opposite trend. In city areas of sub-Saharan Africa, over a third of new diabetes cases in highly educated adults were linked to sugary drink intake. This finding challenges the idea that education alone is enough to protect people from unhealthy food and drink habits.
By identifying which regions and groups of people are most at risk, the study offers a roadmap for focused solutions. These include stronger actions like sugary drink taxes, restrictions on advertising to children, and public awareness campaigns. Public awareness campaigns are organized efforts to educate people about a problem using media and events. But the researchers warn that simply teaching people about the dangers of sugary drinks is not enough. “Given higher intake and health impacts among more educated adults in many parts of the world, general education alone is unlikely to effectively lower consumption of sugary drinks,” Dr. Laura said.
As countries work toward major health targets set by the United Nations—such as reducing preventable diseases and improving health equality—addressing the effects of sugary drinks becomes especially urgent. Preventable diseases are illnesses that can often be avoided with healthier habits or early treatment. This study not only shows how serious the problem is but also gives leaders and governments solid information to create policies that can truly make a difference in public health.
Journal Reference
Lara-Castor L., O’Hearn M., Cudhea F., Miller V., Shi P., Zhang J., Sharib J.R., Cash S.B., Barquera S., Micha R., Mozaffarian D., “Burdens of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease attributable to sugar-sweetened beverages in 184 countries.” Nature Medicine, 2025; 31(2):552–564. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-024-03345-4
About the Authors
Dr. Laura Lara-Castor is a public health researcher focused on global nutrition and diet-related disease. Affiliated with institutions such as Tufts University and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, her work centers on understanding how dietary patterns contribute to major health burdens worldwide. She plays a leading role in the Global Dietary Database project, which compiles food intake data across countries to support evidence-based health strategies. Dr. Lara-Castor’s research aims to make nutritional science more accessible and actionable for policy and public health planning.
Professor Dariush Mozaffarian is a cardiologist and public health expert at Tufts University, where he leads the Food is Medicine Institute. His research spans nutrition, policy, and chronic disease prevention. A leading voice in global health, he advocates for using food-based solutions to reduce diet-related illnesses like diabetes and heart disease. His work often bridges science and policy, aiming to influence national and international efforts to improve dietary health.
