Daily consumption of sugary drinks doubles the risk of stomach cancer
A new U.S. study conducted by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital found that consuming at least one sugar-sweetened beverage daily is associated with more than double the risk of stomach cancer compared with individuals who rarely drink such beverages, while artificially sweetened beverages showed no similar increase in risk. The study’s findings were published in the specialized scientific journal Gastro Hep Advances, according to the institution.
According to the institution, approximately 65 percent of U.S. adults consume one or more sugar-sweetened beverages daily. Previous studies had linked these drinks to an elevated risk of colorectal, breast, and liver cancers, but evidence regarding stomach cancer remained limited until now.
The study analyzed data from 112,284 participants in the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, which have collected detailed information on diet, lifestyle, and general health among U.S. adults over decades. During the follow-up period, which spanned several decades, researchers recorded 278 cases of stomach cancer.
Andrew Chan, a gastroenterologist and epidemiologist and senior author of the study at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital Cancer Center, said, “This is the first study to demonstrate an association between sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and stomach cancer among U.S. residents.” He added that stomach cancer is the fifth most common cause of cancer death worldwide, while scientists’ understanding of the role of diet in its development has remained highly limited.
After excluding other potential risk factors, the study found that participants who consumed at least one serving of sugar-sweetened beverages daily were 2.45 times more likely to develop stomach cancer than those who consumed less than one serving per month. This association was observed in both women and men. Additionally, higher total fructose intake—the primary sweetener in these beverages—was linked to increased disease rates. Among women in the Nurses’ Health Study who consumed more than one sugar-sweetened beverage daily, the risk increased by 3.04 times compared with those who rarely drank them.
To investigate the role of Helicobacter pylori, a bacterium known to be associated with an elevated risk of stomach cancer, researchers examined the infection status of a subset of 940 participants. They found that nearly one-third of them showed evidence of infection, with no association observed between sugar-sweetened beverage consumption and infection rates.
The researchers acknowledged several limitations, primarily the observational nature of the study, which does not allow for establishing a direct causal relationship. Other limitations included limited data on H. pylori infection status and family history of stomach cancer among participants. Furthermore, the majority of the sample consisted of white individuals, which limited the ability to examine differences across racial and ethnic groups. However, the large sample size and detailed health information collected over many years allowed researchers to adjust for many other potential risk factors.
The researchers concluded that the study’s findings warrant further research to verify their validity and to identify the biological mechanisms that may explain the association between these beverages and an increased risk of stomach cancer, as calls grow for health authorities to encourage moderation in the consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages within daily dietary patterns.
