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Colon Cancer and Popular Drinks: What’s The Connection?

10th October, 2010 - Posted by health news - No Comments

For years, medical researchers have tried to determine if a link exists between coffee, tea and soft drink consumption and colon cancer.

It seems part of the question may have been answered – at least for a while. It will come as good news for those who love tea and coffee. As for soft drinks – well, it’s still hard to tell.

Dr. Xuehong Zhang and his team of investigators from the Harvard School of Public Health examined more than a dozen studies from North America and Europe.

Researchers investigated results from more than 730,000 people scattered around the entire planet, during a time frame that covered between six and twenty years. 5,600 eventually got cancer of the colon. Researchers reported that factors related to average amount of alcohol consumed, smoking and gender had negligible influence on their findings.

The results of the study, which were announced in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, seem to indicate that people who drink a lot of coffee every day – even four cups or more – are no more likely to get colon cancer than other people who don’t drink coffee at all.

The findings were also positive for those who drank a lot of tea (32 ounces a day or more) – though not quite as good as the news for coffee drinkers. Tea drinkers ran a slightly higher risk of getting cancer of the colon.

Conclusions were harder to draw where sugary sodas were concerned.

Sugary sodas have long been known to contribute to obesity. Obesity is a cause of a variety of interconnected conditions and diseases, and it’s virtually impossible to separate colon cancer from all the others.

Researchers noted that getting pure data was difficult in this study due to the enormous size and scope of populations being investigated. The beverage volumes and choices of the subjects varied greatly.

Research that had been done previously on any connection between certain popular drinks and colon cancer produced uncertain findings.

According to the American Cancer Society, more than 100,000 people are diagnosed with colon cancer each year in the U.S. alone. About half that number of new rectal cancer cases are diagnosed. Colorectal cancer ranks third on the list of most frequently diagnosed cancer cases. It is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths, totalling about 50,000.

Happily, the death rate has been falling in the last 20 years. There are a number of likely reasons for this..

One reason is that polyps – which sometimes become malignant – are being detected in greater numbers because there are more screening programs available.

As screening facilities and public awareness has grown, more and more cases are being discovered in the early stages, when successful treatment is much more likely

In addition, there has been much more media attention given to the dangers of colorectal cancer lately. For years, colorectal cancer was known as “the disease no one talked about.” That has changed.

Finally, medical science has made great strides in the treatment of colon cancer. More and more individuals now survive the disease than could have been possible in years past. As a result, there are now more than 1 million survivors of colorectal cancer in the United States.

Doctors say everyone should take steps to protect colon health as we age. Regular colon cancer detection tests – like a colonoscopy – are strongly recommended for everyone who is 50 years of age or older.

Meanwhile, don’t worry about enjoying all the coffee and tea you want. The research says you can do so without fear of raising your risk of getting colon cancer.

Neal Kennedy is a former radio and television reporter who often writes on issues related to colon cancer and colonoscopy information. To read more of his articles, visit Keeping Your Colon Healthy.