February 3/Washington/PRNewswire-USNewswire -- In response to "Added Sugar Intake and Cardiovascular Diseases Mortality Among U.S. Adults," a paper published in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine, the American Beverage Association issued the following statement:

"This study shows that adult consumption of added sugars has actually declined, as recently reported by the CDC. A significant part of that reduction is from decreased added sugars from beverages due, in part, to our member companies' ongoing innovation in providing more low- and no-calorie options.  Furthermore, this is an observational study which cannot -- and does not -- show that cardiovascular disease is caused by drinking sugar-sweetened beverages.