"Lost Both Legs After Adding 'This' to Soda... It Was Delicious, But I Regret It"

Malaysian Man Adds Condensed Milk to Soda
2.2 Million New Diabetes Cases Each Year from Sugar-Sweetened Beverages

A story has emerged about a Malaysian man who had both of his legs amputated due to excessive sugar intake, such as adding condensed milk to carbonated drinks.

The Malaysian social enterprise "KEDIDI" highlighted the story of a man who developed diabetes due to excessive sugar intake, such as adding condensed milk to carbonated drinks, and eventually had both legs amputated due to complications. TikTok capture

Recently, Malaysian media outlet SAYS covered a video released on the official TikTok channel of KEDIDI, a Malaysian social enterprise that provides prosthetic arms and legs to amputees. KEDIDI supports not only those who have lost limbs due to accidents, but also people who have undergone amputations as a result of complications from diabetes. To raise awareness about the dangers of diabetes, the organization shares their stories through videos.

According to the video, the man regularly drank carbonated beverages at cafes whenever he went out and enjoyed adding a spoonful of condensed milk to his drinks. It is known that a regular can of cola (12oz) contains 39g of sugar, and he would add even more sugar to that. According to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency and the Korean Diabetes Association, a single tablespoon of sugar (15g) can raise blood sugar by about 50mg/dL in just 15 minutes.

The man stated, "I wouldn't say I was addicted to carbonated drinks with condensed milk, but they tasted really good that way," adding, "Now I regret it." This habit eventually led to diabetes, which progressed to complications that caused necrosis in his feet. Ultimately, the man had to have both lower legs amputated and received prosthetic legs through KEDIDI.

This man suffered from a diabetic foot disease, commonly known as "diabetic foot." This refers to a range of conditions affecting the feet of diabetes patients, where poor blood circulation and reduced resistance to infections cause even minor wounds to rapidly develop into various complications. The term encompasses structural deformities of the foot, calluses, ulcers, infections, and vascular diseases.

When the nerves in the foot are damaged, a person cannot feel injuries or abscesses, leading to neglect. As a result, the toes can become gangrenous, as happened in this man's case.

In Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries, there is a culture of adding sweetened condensed milk-a processed dairy product with added sugar-to coffee and other beverages. This has contributed to a high prevalence of diabetes in the region. In Malaysia, in particular, one in five adults has diabetes, making it the country with the 13th highest diabetes prevalence rate in the world.

Meanwhile, Professor Laura Lara-Castor of the University of Washington and Professor Dariush Mozaffarian of Tufts University published an analysis in Nature Medicine on type 2 diabetes caused by sugar-sweetened beverages across 184 countries. Their research found that, as of 2020, sugar-sweetened beverages such as carbonated and fruit drinks accounted for 2.2 million new cases of type 2 diabetes (T2D) annually worldwide. This means that about 1 in 10 new cases of type 2 diabetes each year are attributable to these beverages. The researchers urged that urgent global intervention is needed to reduce consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages.