Overview
- The peer-reviewed study in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics synthesized nine studies from 2000–2025, including seven cross-sectional and two longitudinal analyses.
- In a random-effects meta-analysis limited to binary anxiety outcomes, higher sugar‑sweetened beverage intake corresponded to 34% greater odds of anxiety disorders (OR 1.34; 95% CI 1.14–1.59).
- The sugary-drink category covered sodas, energy drinks, sweetened juices, squashes, flavored milks, and sweetened teas or coffees, introducing heterogeneity in exposures.
- Researchers caution that reverse causation and confounding factors such as sleep problems or family environment may underlie the link, with caffeine in some beverages potentially affecting symptoms.
- The work, led by Karim Khaled (now at Lebanese American University) with co-authors including Chloe Casey, positions SSB reduction as a plausible prevention target while causal pathways are clarified.