Drinking more than two drinks of soda a day increases the risk of death, research suggests.

A study in 10 European countries showed a link between drinking more sweet sodas and an increased risk of death from a variety of diseases other than cancer, the Journal of the American Medical Association said in an article published Online Monday.
The study, led by Neil Murphy, a scientist at the International Cancer Research Centre, analysed more than 450,000 people from 10 European countries, including Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom, EFE reported on September 3.
researchers focused on soda consumption and the causes of death for more than 41,000 people who died while the study was ongoing.
drinking sweetened sodas increases energy intake, which can lead to weight gain and obesity, according to a study.
in recent years, manufacturers of sweetened sodas have changed their drinks to replace sugar with "low-calorie" or "zero-calorie" sweeteners.
the study, such sodas contain little or no calories, but their physiological and health effects are largely unknown.
320,000 women (71.1 per cent of the total number of participants) and more than 130,000 men, with an average age of 50.8 years.
researchers classified participants, including those who rarely drank sweet sodas (an average of one drink a month) and enthusiastic consumers who drank more than two drinks a day.
After an average of 16 years of follow-up studies, the researchers found that more than 18,000 men and more than 23,000 women died, more than 18,000 of them from cancer, or 43.2 percent of the total, and 9,106 (21.8 percent) from vascular diseases and 1,213 (2.9 percent) from digestive disorders.
study found that drinking more than two cups of soda a day containing artificial sweeteners increases the risk of dying from vascular disease.
but the researchers noted that no link was found between drinking soda and the overall fatality rate from cancer.
study says the findings could support ongoing public health campaigns to reduce soda consumption. (Compilation/Su Jiawei)