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Fruits drinks and diet sodas that have been sweetened with artificial sweeteners raise the risk of diabetes type-2 in women than those that have regular table sugar, according to a study based on more than 60,000 French women.

"Contrary to conventional thinking, the risk of diabetes is higher with 'light' beverages compared with 'regular' sweetened drinks," the National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm) said, AFP reported.

The study included a total of 66,118 women from France. All women were asked about their health, diet and intake of fruit juices and soda. The women, on an average, were followed up for 14 years.

Study results showed that women who drank sodas had a higher risk of diabetes type-2 than women who drank fruit juices.

Women who drank sodas that had artificial sweeteners had a 15 percent increase in diabetes risk if they drank 16.9 ounces or 500 ml of soda per week when compared to women who drank the same amount of regular soda. The risk of diabetes jumped to nearly 60 percent if the women drank 50 ounces of these "light" or diet sodas.

However, women who reported drinking 100 percent fruit juices had no increased risk of being diagnosed with diabetes type-2.

"We cannot rule out that factors other than ASB (artificially sweetened beverages)... are responsible for the association with diabetes, the authors said, according to AFP.

Even though diet sodas have been considered healthy food by many, studies show that they are often not. In a review published in Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine, Qing Yang talks about how artificial sweeteners affect the body as well as change the circuitry of the brain.

According to Medline Plus, use of artificial sweeteners like aspartame, sucralose and Saccharin do pose any health risks and aren't linked to cancer risk in humans.

The study is published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.