BMJ 2013;348:f7654 doi: 10.1136/bmj.f7654 (Published 2 January 2014)
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NEWS Conflicts of interest may bias research into sugary drinks and obesity Jacqui Wise London
Studies whose authors have some links to the food industry are five times as likely to report no association between consuming sugary drinks and weight gain than studies whose authors report no such conflict of interest, new research shows.1 Researchers from the University of Navarra in Spain identified 17 published systematic reviews (with 18 conclusions) that examined the association between sugar sweetened beverages and weight gain or obesity. These reviews were independently classified into two groups: those that found a positive association and those that did not.
In six of the 17 studies the authors had declared an affiliation with or had received funding from the food and beverage industry. Five of these six concluded that the scientific evidence was insufficient to support a positive association between consumption of sugar sweetened drinks and weight gain or obesity. This contrasts with those reviews without any reported conflict of interest, where the same proportion (10 of 12) came to the opposite conclusion that drinking sugar sweetened drinks could be a potential risk factor for weight gain.
The study, reported in the open access journal PLoS Medicine, concluded that those reviews with conflicts of interest were five
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times as likely to present a conclusion of no positive association as those without them (relative risk 5.0 (95% confidence interval 1.3 to 19.3)).
The authors admitted that it was impossible to rule out the possibility of publication bias among those studies not declaring any conflict of interest. However, they pointed out that the best large randomised trials also supported a direct association between sugar sweetened beverage consumption and weight gain or obesity. The authors, who themselves declared that they had no conflicts of interest, said, “Our findings serve to draw attention to possible inaccuracies in scientific evidence from research funded by the food industry.” 1
Bes-Rastrollo M, Schulze M, Ruiz-Canela M, Martinez-Gonzalez M. Financial conflicts of interest and reporting bias regarding the association between sugar-sweetened beverages and weight gain: a systematic review of systematic reviews. PLoS Med 2014;12: e1001578.
Cite this as: BMJ 2014;348:f7654 © BMJ Publishing Group Ltd 2013
Subscribe: http://www.bmj.com/subscribe
Page 1 of 1
News
NEWS Conflicts of interest may bias research into sugary drinks and obesity Jacqui Wise London
Studies whose authors have some links to the food industry are five times as likely to report no association between consuming sugary drinks and weight gain than studies whose authors report no such conflict of interest, new research shows.1 Researchers from the University of Navarra in Spain identified 17 published systematic reviews (with 18 conclusions) that examined the association between sugar sweetened beverages and weight gain or obesity. These reviews were independently classified into two groups: those that found a positive association and those that did not.
In six of the 17 studies the authors had declared an affiliation with or had received funding from the food and beverage industry. Five of these six concluded that the scientific evidence was insufficient to support a positive association between consumption of sugar sweetened drinks and weight gain or obesity. This contrasts with those reviews without any reported conflict of interest, where the same proportion (10 of 12) came to the opposite conclusion that drinking sugar sweetened drinks could be a potential risk factor for weight gain.
The study, reported in the open access journal PLoS Medicine, concluded that those reviews with conflicts of interest were five
For personal use only: See rights and reprints http://www.bmj.com/permissions
times as likely to present a conclusion of no positive association as those without them (relative risk 5.0 (95% confidence interval 1.3 to 19.3)).
The authors admitted that it was impossible to rule out the possibility of publication bias among those studies not declaring any conflict of interest. However, they pointed out that the best large randomised trials also supported a direct association between sugar sweetened beverage consumption and weight gain or obesity. The authors, who themselves declared that they had no conflicts of interest, said, “Our findings serve to draw attention to possible inaccuracies in scientific evidence from research funded by the food industry.” 1
Bes-Rastrollo M, Schulze M, Ruiz-Canela M, Martinez-Gonzalez M. Financial conflicts of interest and reporting bias regarding the association between sugar-sweetened beverages and weight gain: a systematic review of systematic reviews. PLoS Med 2014;12: e1001578.
Cite this as: BMJ 2014;348:f7654 © BMJ Publishing Group Ltd 2013
Subscribe: http://www.bmj.com/subscribe
