Soda doesn't increase cancer risk

Recent research shows that carbonated beverages don't increase the risk of developing cancer of the oesophagus. In fact, people who drink diet soda are actually less likely to develop oesophageal adenocarcinoma, a type of cancer of the oesophagus. But this does not mean that soft drinks need to be promoted as a way to prevent this cancer. Instead, it's likely that heavy diet soda consumption is a stand-in for healthy habits or traits that are protective against the disease. Rates of oesophageal adenocarcinoma have more than tripled since the 1970s, and researchers from India suggested in 2004 that the simultaneous sharp rise in carbonated soda consumption could be the cause. Given that carbonated beverages are acidic and can cause heartburn, a major risk factor for oesophageal adenocarcinoma, such a link is biologically plausible. Researchers from the Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, USA, studied 1,095 people with different types of oesophageal and stomach cancer and compared them with 687 matched healthy control subjects. Overall, the team found, drinking soda slightly reduced oesophageal adenocarcinoma risk. When they separated out the effects of diet and non-diet soda, it was found that people who drank diet soda had a 53 percent lower risk of the cancer than those who drank the least. Sugared soda had no effect. Obesity, gastric acid reflux disease, cigarette smoking and low fruit and vegetable consumption are now known to be the chief risk factors for oesophageal cancer and can be controlled. While the possibility that diet soda itself could be protective can't be ruled out, excessive consumption carries its own health risks - for example damaging tooth enamel. People hoping to avoid oesophageal adenocarcinoma shouldn't start increasing diet soda consumption, but should instead focus on controlling the well-established risk factors for the disease.