Overview

• Drinking about one can per day was associated with roughly a 60% higher MASLD risk for artificially sweetened beverages and about 50% for sugar‑sweetened drinks.
• Researchers analyzed dietary recalls from nearly 124,000 UK Biobank participants without liver disease and followed them for about a decade.
• Artificially sweetened beverages were linked to liver‑related mortality in a dose‑dependent pattern, whereas sugar‑sweetened drinks showed no significant death association.
• Replacing roughly one can daily with water was associated with a 12–15% lower MASLD risk, and switching between sugary and diet drinks did not reduce risk.
• The study relies on self‑reported intake, lacks sweetener‑specific details, is not yet peer reviewed, and does not prove causation; regulators still consider approved sweeteners safe at intended uses.