Consumption of at least one sugary drink a day may be associated with a significantly higher risk of liver cancer, according to research presented at the annual meeting of the American Food Company, NUTRITION 2022 LIVE ONLINE, held on June 14-16.
Researchers from several institutions, including the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, looked at data from 90,504 postmenopausal women, aged 50 to 79, for nearly 19 years of follow-up. They wanted to see if there was a pattern between the consumption of sugary drinks, such as soft drinks and fruit, and the risk of liver cancer.
They found that women who drank at least one sugary drink a day were 73% more likely to develop liver cancer than women who drank three or fewer sugary drinks a month. Women who drank one or more sugary drinks daily had a 78% higher risk, according to the data.
Liver cancer is the 6th most commonly diagnosed form of cancer worldwide, according to the World Cancer Research Fund International, and cases and related deaths are on the rise in the United States, according to the American Cancer Society.
Prior to the study, evidence suggests that other drinking habits may affect the risk of liver cancer, such as alcohol consumption, which is associated with a higher risk, and coffee, which is associated with a lower risk.
According to Longgang Zhao, lead author of the study and PhD candidate at the University of South Carolina, the study’s findings suggest that cutting out sugary drinks may help reduce the risk of liver cancer if more research confirms the link.
“Replacing sugary drinks with water and sugar-free coffee or tea could significantly reduce the risk of liver cancer,” Zhao said in a press release.
Sugary drinks can disrupt insulin sensitivity, causing a variety of health problems
The researchers hypothesized that sugary drinks would increase the risk of liver cancer due to the side effects of sugar. Consuming too much sugar can make people less sensitive to insulin, the hormone that helps manage blood sugar. High sugar intake can also lead to weight gain, increasing the risk of developing fat around the liver. Both factors can be detrimental to liver health and have been linked to cancer risk, according to researchers. However, more research is needed to better understand the link between sugary drinks and liver cancer. The study is limited in that it is observational, noting a link between liver cancer and sugary drinks and does not directly show that sugary drinks cause cancer. And it is not clear whether the connection may apply to other populations, such as men and younger women, the researchers wrote. “As some evidence suggests that people are either maintaining their sugary drinking habits or increasing their consumption, understanding the risks could help people make healthier decisions about their daily beverage choices,” Zhao told the presentation. .
