This Bad Habit DOUBLES Heart Attack Risk

The only thing more tragic than the high death rates from cardiovascular disease is the fact that, in the vast majority of cases, it is entirely preventable.

When you think about factors that increase the risk of heart disease, things like smoking, obesity, and lack of physical activity might come to mind.

But there’s one factor that often gets overlooked—and that mistake could be deadly.

Because according to the latest research, this ONE bad habit not only DOUBLES the risk of having a heart attack, but also increases the risk of dying from coronary artery disease.

I’m sure we’re all guilty of this bad habit from time to time. But it’s those who overdo it who are in the most danger.

I’m talking about drinking too much sugar.

Sodas might immediately come to mind, but those fancy frappuccinos and smoothie drinks—and even fruit juices—are just as dangerous.

Researchers tracked nearly 18,000 adults and found that those who drank 680 grams of sugar or more every day had DOUBLE the risk of dying from heart disease, compared to those who drank about 28.

Let’s put that in perspective.

One soda equals 32 grams of sugar.

One bottle of sweet tea equal 58 grams of sugar.

Energy drinks aren’t much better, with about 60 grams of sugar.

And some of those fancy flavored coffee drinks have as many as 80 grams of sugar!

Even those supposedly healthier bottled smoothie drinks can contain up to 80 grams of sugar.

EVERY SINGLE ONE of the drinks I just listed contains more than the recommend amount of TOTAL sugar we’re supposed to consume over the course of the entire day!

That magic number is 25 grams.

As bad as over-EATING sugar is, over-DRINKING is far worse. That’s because unlike food, drinks do not contain other nutrients that would slow down sugar’s absorption into your bloodstream.

With the drinks, you may as well hook up an IV and pump the stuff directly into your veins.

With all we know about the dangers of sugar consumption, is it any wonder that heart attacks and coronary heart disease are on their list of side effects?

The message here is clear: STAY AWAY from sugary drinks.

And skip the ones with the fake sugar, too. Hundreds of studies have been done on the health hazards of the artificial sweetener aspartame alone, and it has been linked to everything from joint pain and depression, to memory loss and brain cancer.

Not so sweet, is it?

To a brighter day,

Dr. Richard Gerhauser, M.D.