Regular coffee and tea consumption lowers risk of several types of cancer

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Regular tea and coffee consumption has already been linked to many positive effects on health. A review of data from 14 studies now points to a further effect: it reduces the risk of cancer, specifically in the head and neck area. The study has been published in the American Cancer Society’s journal Cancer.

Scientists from the University of Utah, USA, conducted the study. The study participants filled out questionnaires about their consumption of coffee (caffeinated and decaffeinated) and tea in cups per day.

The result:

People who drank more than four cups of caffeinated coffee a day had, compared to non-coffee drinkers,

a 17 percent lower risk of developing head and neck cancer,
a 30 percent lower risk of cancer of the oral cavity,
a 22 percent lower risk of cancer of the larynx
and a 41 percent lower risk of cancer of the lower throat.

The consumption of decaffeinated coffee was associated with a 25 percent lower risk of oral cavity cancer.
The results for tea were less clear. Drinking tea was was associated with a 29 percent lower risk of lower throat cancer.
In addition, daily consumption of one cup or less of tea was associated with a 9 percent lower risk of head and neck cancer overall and a 27 percent lower risk of throat cancer.
The data fell out of line with consumption of more than one cup per day – here the risk of throat cancer was increased. The researchers suspect that drinking tea could possibly increase the risk of reflux disease (stomach contents flowing back into the oesophagus), which is associated with a higher risk of laryngeal cancer, reports the British daily newspaper The Guardian. However, further studies must clarify whether this is really the case.
The study team itself points out that the study is subject to limitations, for example, that the self-assessment of tea and coffee consumption may be unreliable and that the type of tea or coffee was not taken into account. It is an observational study in which interfering influences from other factors can never be completely ruled out.

“While there has been previous research on coffee and tea consumption and cancer risk reduction, this study has shed light on the differential effects on different subgroups of head and neck cancer, including the observation that even decaffeinated coffee has some beneficial effect,” the study’s lead author, Yuan-Chin Amy Lee, is quoted as saying in a release.