A research published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism was of the view that sugar drinks have been able to suppress cortisol. It is the first study, which has shown that sugary drinks are beneficial with regard to reduce stress levels.

Cortisol is the hormone known for activating stress response in the brain and it also increases the belly fat. It is important to note that the benefits are seen due to high-sugar consumption and not with aspartame-sweetened products.

An experiment was carried out in which 11 women and 8 men aged between 18 and 40 took part. The participants had both sugar-sweetened drinks and aspartame drinks. After having the drinks, the researchers took the participants for functional MRI screens in which the brain's stress response could be known.

The researchers also measured the levels of cortisol through saliva samples. The study was carried out for more than 12 days and it was found that women who had the sugar-sweetened drinks were having lower cortisol level in comparison to the group of participants that had the aspartame-sweetened drinks.

Another startling thing noticed by the researchers was that the women who drank the sugar drinks had more brain activity in hippocampus. This part of brain gets slow when stress level increases. After knowing the fact that 35% of adults and 17% of children are obese in America, it is important to know that how psychological or emotional stress could impact the amount of sugary drinks that people are consuming.

Sugar has many negative side-effects. Though it is said to lower stress levels, it is unhealthy in large amounts. As per the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, around 50% of the US population is consuming varying levels of sugary drinks daily.