Coffee no longer deemed possible carcinogen

Lyon-based IARC, which past year prompted headlines worldwide by saying processed meat can cause cancer, reached its conclusions after reviewing more than 1,000 scientific studies in humans and animals.

The experts concluded coffee could no longer be classified as a possible carcinogen – and the World Health Organization body says there is evidence that coffee drinking actually lowers the risk of developing specific cancers. “In fact, we found that coffee protects against some cancers such as liver and uterine endometrium cancer”.

A new review from the WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer says coffee may not be linked to cancer after all, which is a reversal of the organization’s 1991 claim that the beverage might be a carcinogen.

Murray pointed out that the more than 130 million Americans who drink coffee every day can now do so with increased confidence. In addition, coffee consumption has been associated with a reduced risk of colorectal cancer in a number of studies. Brawley said the cancer risk of drinking very hot beverages was similar to that posed by eating pickled vegetables.

It said: “The evidence that drinking coffee might cause bladder cancer, which was limited in the previous evaluation, has become weaker, and it is no longer possible to determine whether drinking coffee causes bladder cancer”.

Mate is typically consumed from a closed container with a metal straw that delivers the brew directly to the throat.

“To all the tea lovers out there, these new findings don’t mean that you can no longer enjoy hot drinks”.

However, there was some evidence that drinking these and other beverages at temperatures above 65 degrees Celsius – may cause cancer of the gullet.

“We say: be prudent, let hot drinks cool down”, he told Reuters, adding that the WHO’s advice was to “not consume foods or drinks when they are at a very hot – scalding hot – temperature”.

Coffee drinkers are about to get some good news. “There is physical evidence that very hot beverages can contribute to cell injury in the esophagus and thus contribute to cancer formation”. “This decision from IARC reflects a large body of evidence that consistently shows coffee does not increase the risk of cancer”.

Taken together, the available data suggests “there is inadequate evidence in humans for the carcinogenicity of coffee drinking”, said the agency.

A study this week links whole grains with long life.

But he stressed these were individual studies and were not the main focus of the IARC work.

He said drinks in the UK, Europe and North America were typically drunk at 60C and below, with tea a bit higher at 60C to 65C.