Fizzy drinks increase diabetes risk

Just one fizzy drink a day can increase a person's risk of developing Type 2 diabetes by a fifth, according to a new study.

Researchers at the Imperial College, London looked at the diets of 12,000 people with diabetes and compared it with 16,000 who did not.

They found that people who consumed one sweetened beverage a day were at a 22 per cent increased risk of being diagnosed with the metabolic condition.

According to figures, some 2.6 million people in the UK have diabetes with 500,000 of that number being undiagnosed. Due to changes in dietary habits, the number of cases is expected to rise above four million within the next 12 years.

Dr Dora Romaguera, who led the study said: "There was an association in normal weight individuals, overweight and the obese. Even in normal weight individuals, those who drank a glass of soft drink a day were more likely to develop diabetes."