Researchers associate soft drinks, smoking with COPD

2/7/2012

Employee wellness programs can help workers quit smoking, hopefully before anyone on staff develops lung cancer or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), two conditions that have been associated with nicotine use. Recently, researchers have found that there may be another risk factor for COPD and asthma, namely soft drink consumption.

Scientists from the University of Adelaide in Australia have discovered that there is an association between heavy soft drink intake and a person's chances of developing COPD and asthma. The researchers surveyed more than 16,000 individuals to come to their conclusion, and found that the more soft drinks people reported drinking, the more likely they were to have one or both of these conditions.

Furthermore, the scientists found that smoking worsens this association. When compared to people who did not smoke or consume soft drinks, people who used cigarettes and drank more than 17 ounces of soft drinks per day had a more than 6 percent increased risk of COPD.

The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute reports that COPD makes it difficult for individuals to breathe, and it gets worse over time.

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