Drinking very hot tea, coffee may triple food pipe cancer risk, UK study finds

Regularly consuming tea, coffee, and other beverages at very hot temperatures significantly increases the risk of developing food pipe or gullet cancer, known as oesophageal cancer, a UK study has suggested.

Researchers at the University of Oxford found that people who drank beverages at “very hot” temperatures had around three times the risk of developing the cancer compared with those who drank them warm, BBC reports.

The study, published in the International Journal of Cancer, involved 977,282 middle-aged men and women, making it the largest study to date to establish a link between hot drinks and oesophageal cancer, according to the researchers.

They defined drinks at 65C or above as “very hot”. Drinking six or more hot beverages a day was also associated with an increased risk.

The researchers say very hot liquids may damage the cell lining of the oesophagus, or food pipe, as they pass towards the stomach.

Scalding Hot Brews

Tea made immediately after a kettle has fully boiled can be close to 100C (212F). Once poured into a cup, its temperature generally falls to around 90-95C.

Adding milk may cool tea or coffee slightly, but researchers say a milky drink can still be too hot.

Cancer Research UK said there was no precise recommended waiting time, but advised people concerned about the risk to wait until a drink was comfortable to consume rather than drinking it while it was still very hot.

Lead researcher Dr Keren Papier said previous research in South America, where very hot mate is widely consumed, had also found a similar association with oesophageal cancer.

“More research is now needed to identify the exact drink temperatures linked to this increased risk,” she said.

A separate study involving 118 young adults found that most participants considered black coffee too hot to drink only at temperatures of 70C or above, said the British broadcaster.

One takeaway coffee cup manufacturer recommends 49-60C as the ideal temperature for hot coffee on the go, while MTPak Coffee says coffee requested “extra hot” can be served above 82C.

Small Overall Risk

The researchers estimate that around one or two in every 10 oesophageal cancer cases could potentially be prevented if people stopped drinking very hot beverages.

Squamous cell oesophageal cancer is rare, affecting a few thousand people a year in the UK. About 1 percent of the population has a lifetime risk of being diagnosed with this type of cancer.

Smoking and alcohol consumption remain more important risk factors. Fiona Osgun of Cancer Research UK, which funded the study, said the most important ways to reduce the risk were not smoking and cutting down on alcohol.

Symptoms of oesophageal cancer can include heartburn, indigestion, pain in the throat or chest and unexplained weight loss.