Sunday June 9, 2013 (foodconsumer.org) -- Sugar-sweetened beverages and foods have been known to increased risk of obesity, metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes.   Sugar should be known as a risk factor for at least one more disease, cardiovascular disease like coronary heart disease.

A review in Internal Medicine suggests that sugar intake can boost the risk of cardiovascular disease.  S. Thornley from University of Auckland in Auckland, New Zealand and colleagues, authors of the report, recommended that people who are at high risk for cardiovascular disease should restrict their intake of sugar in addition to reduced intake of saturated fat and salt.

"More recently, evidence suggests that excess sugar intake is more likely than either traditional factor to lead to atherosclerotic disease," the authors wrote, after reviewing epidemiological, biochemical, and psychological evidence that implicates sugar consumption as an important risk factor for heart disease.

The researchers found evidence consistent that markers of sugar intake were associated with risk factors for cardiovascular disease or the disease itself.   The association between either saturated fat or salt and cardiovascular disease was relatively weaker.  (repporing by David Liu, PHD)