Sugary Drinks Linked To Cancer Risk In Women

A new study out in the journal Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention reports that the more sugar-sweetened beverages a woman drinks, the greater her risk for endometrial cancer. This form of uterine cancer has long been linked to overweight and obesity, which can increase the body’s levels of insulin and estrogen. In fact, the new study, though not terribly surprising, showed that sugar consumption itself was linked to estrogen-dependent type I endometrial cancer, but not the less common estrogen-independent type II form.

The study followed over 23,000 women, asking them how frequently they consumed various foods and drinks over the past 12 months. The team was especially interested in sugar-sweetened sodas like Coke and Pepsi, both in their caffeinated and un-caffeinated forms; other sugary carbonated drinks, like 7-Up; and non-carbonated sugary drinks like Hawaiian Punch and lemonade. Sugar-free drinks included both low- or no-calorie caffeinated and caffeine-free cola (for example, Pepsi-Free and Diet 7-Up). The team was also interested in whether sweets and baked goods, and starchy foods, might also be connected to endometrial cancer risk.

Women who drank the most sugary drinks – more than four servings per week – had a 78% greater risk of developing estrogen-dependent type I endometrial cancer than women who drank none. Women who were older, had higher body mass index (BMI), a history of diabetes, later menopause, and any type of estrogen therapy also had a greater risk of developing endometrial cancer, which lines up with earlier research. But the connection between sugary drinks and estrogen-dependent endometrial cancer was there even regardless of body weight.