New research conducted by
scientists in France has shown that consumption of sugary drinks may increase
the risk of cancer.
Sugary drinks, according to the
researchers, are identified as ones with more than 5% sugar. It include fruit
juice (with or without added sugar), soft drinks, sweetened milkshakes, energy
drinks, and sweetened tea or coffee.
In the report, published in the
British Medical Journal, the Sorbonne Paris Cité University scientists tracked
over 100,000 people who consumed such drinks for a maximum of nine years.
Participants of the study were
made to complete 24-hour online validated dietary questionnaires designed to
measure the usual intake of 3,300 different food and beverage items while other
risk factors like smoking were taken into cognizance.
During this period, 2,193 cancer
cases were diagnosed — a breakdown of which included 693 breast cancers, 291
prostate cancers, and 166 colorectal cancers — with an average age of 59 years.
The researchers found that a
daily 100ml increase in the consumption of sugary drinks was associated with an
18% increased risk of overall cancer and a 22% increased risk of breast cancer.
Subjecting their findings to
further scrutiny, they split the group of sugary drinks into fruit juices and
others and similarly found that the consumption of both beverage types was
associated with a higher risk of overall cancer.
According to them, limiting
sugary drink consumption, together with taxation and marketing restrictions,
might contribute to a reduction in the number of cancer cases recorded
annually.
“These data support the relevance
of existing nutritional recommendations to limit sugary drink consumption,
including 100% fruit juice,” the researchers said.
“It also calls for policy
actions, such as taxation and marketing restrictions targeting sugary drinks,
which might potentially contribute to the reduction of cancer incidence.”
Previous studies have
convincingly associated the consumption of sugary beverages to an increased
obesity risk which, in turn, is recognized as a risk factor for many cancers.
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