A study found that drinking more sugary drinks (like sodas and sweetened beverages) is linked to a higher risk of oral cavity cancer (OCC) in women, even if they don’t smoke or drink alcohol. The study followed over 162,000 women and found that those who drank sugary beverages daily had nearly five times the risk of getting oral cavity cancer compared to those who drank less than one sugary drink a month.
Even when researchers looked only at women who didn’t smoke much or didn’t drink much alcohol, the risk was still more than five times higher for those drinking sugary drinks daily.
The study suggests that eating too much sugar could directly affect oral cavity cancer, just like other cancers in the digestive system. The researchers also said that this supports the idea of limiting sugar in our diets to improve health and prevent disease.
However, they also pointed out that while the relative risk increase looks large, the actual risk of developing oral cavity cancer is still low overall. The researchers advised that the results should be viewed carefully and said more studies are needed to better understand how different diets might affect the risk of oral cancer, especially in people with or without traditional risk factors like smoking or drinking.
The study tracked women in the Nurses' Health Study, with an average age of 43, over 30 years. During that time, they found 124 cases of oral cavity cancer. They asked participants about their diet every few years, including how often they drank sugary beverages. The sugary drinks in the study included sodas and other sweetened drinks.
The study also found that people who drank sugary drinks daily had a higher risk of getting cancer in the oral tongue and other areas of the mouth.
While the findings are important, the researchers said the study had some limitations, like a small number of cancer cases and the fact that it focused only on women, which means the results might not apply to men.
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