Do you like your tea served piping hot? Beware you could be doubling your cancer risk, according to a new report.
Researchers from Tehran University of Medical Sciences in Iran recently conducted a study to determine the association between drinking hot tea and esophageal cancer.
To do so, they examined more than 50,000 people. They followed the participants for 10 years, tracking the temperature of the tea they drank as well as their overall health. During the follow-up, 317 new cases of esophageal cancer were identified.
Furthermore, they found those who drank tea warmer than 140 degrees and consumed more than 3 cups of tea daily were 90 percent more likely to develop esophageal cancer, compared to those who drank less tea and at cooler temperatures.
Many people enjoy drinking tea, coffee, or other hot beverages. However, according to our report, drinking very hot tea can increase the risk of esophageal cancer, and it is therefore advisable to wait until hot beverages cool down before drinking, lead author Farhad Islam said.
Tea is rarely consumed at temperatures that hot in the U.S. or Europe. However, in places like Iran, Russia, Turkey and South America, its more common to serve tea at that temperature or hotter.
president of the Tea Association of the USA, told CNN last year.
The scientists do not know why drinking hot tea is linked with esophageal cancer, but this isnt the first study of its kind.
A 2018 study, published in Annals of Internal Medicine, found that consuming hot or burning hot tea is linked with a two- to five-fold rise in esophageal cancer, but only among individuals who also smoke or drink alcohol.
The analysts from that evaluation believe hot beverages may damage the tissue lining the esophagus, which could increase the risk of cancer from other factors, such as repeated irritation of the esophagus and the formation of inflammatory compounds.
Want to learn more about the latest assessment? Take a look at the full report here, https://bit.ly/2JrhvJt.
