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when you order coffeeDo you call it making it “extra hot”?
Whether you enjoy tea, coffee or something else, a hot beverage is a comforting and often highly personal ritual. The exact temperature at which to brew tea or serve coffee for best taste is hotly debated.
But there may be something else you’re not considering: your health.
Yes, hot drinks can be too hot – and are even linked to cancer. So let’s take a look at the evidence.
What is the connection between hot drinks and cancer?
There is no evidence of a link between hot drinks and throat cancer And evidence of the link between hot drinks and stomach cancer is ambiguous. But there is a link between hot drinks and cancer of the “food pipe” or esophagus.
In 2016, the International Agency for Research on Cancer classified drinking very hot beverages, meaning above 65 °C, as “probably carcinogenic to humans” – the same risk category as emissions from indoor wood smoke or eating too much red meat.
The agency’s report found that temperature, not the beverage, was responsible.
It is based mainly on evidence South AmericaWhere studies found an association between drinking too much mate – a traditional herbal beverage usually drunk at around 70°C – and a higher risk of esophageal cancer.
Similar studies in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia have also supported an association between drinking very hot beverages and the development of esophageal cancer.
However, until recently, we did not have enough research to discover this link in Europe and other Western populations.
This year, a large study of nearly half a million adults united kingdom It was confirmed that drinking large amounts of very hot beverages (tea and coffee) causes esophageal cancer.
About the author
Vincent Ho is Associate Professor and Clinical Academic Gastroenterologist at Western Sydney University.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. read the original article,
The study found that a person who drank eight or more cups of very hot tea or coffee a day was about six times more likely to develop esophageal cancer than a person who did not drink hot beverages.
How do hot beverages cause cancer?
Drinking too many hot beverages can damage cells in the lining of the esophagus, and it is thought that over time this may lead to the development of cancer. Researchers first proposed this link nearly 90 years ago.
What we know about how hot drinks can damage the esophagus comes mainly from animal studies.
Very hot water can accelerate the development of cancer. A 2016 animal study looked at rats that were at risk of developing cancer. Mice who were given very hot water (70 °C) were more likely to develop pre-cancerous growths in the esophagus, and sooner, than mice given water at a lower temperature.
Another theory is that heat damage to the lining of the esophagus weakens its normal barrier, increasing the risk of further damage from gastric acid reflux (from the stomach). Over time, this long-term damage can increase the chance of developing esophageal cancer.
Does it matter how much you drink?
Cancer risk may depend on how much hot liquid you drink at one time and how quickly. It seems that drinking too much alcohol at once is more likely to cause damage to the esophagus than heat injury.
In one study, researchers measured the temperature inside the esophagus of people who drank hot coffee at different temperatures.
Main symptoms of esophageal cancer
NHS
Esophageal cancer can affect your digestion, such as:
- Difficulty swallowing (dysphagia)
- feeling or being sick
- heartburn or acid reflux
- symptoms of indigestion, such as excessive burping
Other symptoms include:
- cough that doesn’t get better
- a hoarse voice
- loss of appetite or losing weight without trying
- feeling tired or lacking energy
- pain in your throat or in the middle of your chest, especially when swallowing
- black stools or coughing up blood (although these are uncommon)
They found that the size of the sip a person took had a greater impact than how hot the drink was. A very large sip (20 ml) of 65°C coffee increased the temperature inside the esophagus by 12°C. Over time, large sips can cause sustained heat injury that can damage cells.
The occasional small sip of coffee at 65°C is unlikely to cause any long-term problems. But over the years, drinking large amounts of very hot beverages can greatly increase the risk of esophageal cancer.
So, what is the safe temperature?
The brewing temperature for drinks such as coffee is very high – often close to the boiling point of water.
For example, takeaway hot drinks may sometimes be served at very high temperatures (about 90 °C) to allow them to cool when people drink them later in the office or at home.
A study from the United States calculated the ideal temperature for coffee, taking into account the risk of heat injury to the esophagus while preserving flavor and taste. The researchers came up with an optimum temperature of 57.8 degrees Celsius.
Tips for Consuming Hot Drinks Safely
Slow down, take your time and enjoy.
It is important to allow time for very hot drinks to cool and research has shown that the temperature of hot drinks can drop by 10-15°C in five minutes.
Other things that can help cool hot drinks:
- shake and blow
- Unwrapping a takeaway drink. coffee With the lid closed it can cool twice as fast as when the lid is off
- Mix it in some cold water or milk.
Finally, small sips are a good idea to test the temperature, given that we know that drinking large amounts has a significant impact on the temperature inside the esophagus and potential damage to its lining.