Warning on Sweetened Drinks and Stomach Cancer

A new study links daily consumption of sweetened drinks to an increased risk of stomach cancer.

A large study has shown that daily consumption of sugary drinks increases the risk of stomach cancer by two and a half times. This risk is about three times in women and about two times in men. Sugary drinks are bad for health, but many people still consume them on a daily basis. A new study has shown that this daily habit may significantly increase the risk of developing cancer.

In a study published in Gastro Hep Advances, researchers found that people who consume at least one sugary drink per day are nearly 2.5 times more likely to develop stomach cancer than people who never drink sugary drinks.

Dr. Andrew T. Chan, senior author of the study and a gastroenterologist from Massachusetts General Hospital, explained: This is the first study to show an association between the consumption of sugary drinks and stomach cancer in the American population. Stomach cancer is the fifth leading cause of cancer death in the world, but we knew very little about the role of diet in the development of this cancer.

Known harms of sugary drinks

The link between sugary drinks and stomach cancer has so far been inconclusive, but the negative health effects of these drinks are clear. Evidence shows that sugary drinks are linked to more than 180,000 deaths worldwide each year and increase the risk of type 2 diabetes, obesity and many other diseases. Sugary drinks have previously been linked to other types of cancer, including breast, liver and colon cancer.

Researchers conducted this study using data from two large studies that included more than 112,000 participants. Participants in these studies filled out questionnaires every two years about diet (including consumption of sugary drinks such as soda, punch, lemonade, and sports drinks), lifestyle, medical history, and disease outcomes.

Between 1986 and 2022, among 112,284 participants, 278 cases of stomach cancer were recorded.

After taking into account other risk factors, the results showed that people who drank at least one sugary drink per day (equivalent to 237 ml or about a regular glass) were more than twice as likely to develop stomach cancer. This increased risk was seen in both male and female groups; In such a way that women were about three times and men about twice more likely to develop stomach cancer than people who did not consume sweet drinks.

Importantly, the researchers found no link between artificial sweeteners and stomach cancer.

The researchers emphasize that this is an observational study and only shows association, not cause and effect. In other words, it cannot be said with certainty that consumption of sugary drinks directly causes stomach cancer, as other factors may also play a role.

The lack of sufficient information about Helicobacter pylori bacterial infection (a type of bacteria that infects the stomach and is a known cause of stomach cancer) in the participants can be mentioned as another limitation of this study.

Although this study did not investigate the exact mechanism of the effect of sugary drinks on stomach cancer, researchers have proposed several possible factors:

Insulin resistance (decrease in the body's ability to control blood sugar)

Disturbance of the balance of beneficial intestinal bacteria (dysbiosis)

The researchers emphasize that more research is needed to confirm these findings and identify the exact biological mechanisms.