A study has found that folks who consume more sweetened drinks, whether sodas or fruit drinks, diet or regular—are more likely to be depressed. The study, presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s annual meeting, studied beverage consumption of more than 260,000 adults for a year. Five years later, researchers revisited these subjects and asked if they had been diagnosed with depression. More than 11,000 said they had. Researchers discovered that people who drank more than four cans of fruit punch were 38 percent more likely to be depressed, and those who drank four cans of soda were 30 percent more likely. Moreover, those who drank diet soda were more apt to be diagnosed with depression than those who drank regular soda. Researchers cautioned that these sugary drinks don’t necessarily cause depression. It could be that folks more prone to depression are also more prone to consume sugary drinks. Still, scientists say better safe than sorry. “Our research suggests that cutting out or down on sweetened diet drinks or replacing them with unsweetened coffee may naturally help lower your depression risk,” says Dr. Honglei Chen, the study’s primary author. (Fox News)

Paul Asay has covered religion for The Washington Post, Christianity Today, Beliefnet.com and The (Colorado Springs) Gazette. He writes about culture for Plugged In and wrote the Batman book God on the Streets of Gotham (Tyndale). He lives in Colorado Springs with wife, Wendy, and two children. Follow him on Twitter.