Full Breakdown
Sugary Drinks Linked to Higher Stomach Cancer Risk in Large U.S. Study
8/21/2026, 1:36:14 AM
Study Findings
Researchers from the Mass General Brigham Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School analyzed health data from 112,284 U.S. adults in the Nurses’ Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. Over several decades, 278 participants were diagnosed with gastric cancer. Participants who reported drinking at least one sugar-sweetened beverage per day—including soda, lemonade, punch, sports drinks, and energy drinks—had 2.45 times the risk of developing gastric cancer compared with those who drank less than one serving per month. The risk was about three-fold for women and about two-fold for men. No increased risk was observed for artificially sweetened beverages, and *Helicobacter pylori* infection did not explain the pattern. The results were published in *Gastro Hep Advances* on August 17.
Background & Context
Gastric cancer is the fifth-leading cause of cancer death worldwide. Prior research has linked sugar-sweetened beverages to colorectal, breast, and liver cancers, but evidence on stomach cancer was limited. Approximately 65 % of U.S. adults report daily consumption of sugary drinks, making the new association relevant for public health.
Data & Statistics
- Study cohort: 112,284 participants (?68,000 women, ?43,000 men)
- Gastric cancer cases: 278 (140 women, 138 men)
- Risk increase: 2.45 × overall; ~3 × for women; ~2 × for men
- Artificially sweetened drinks: no significant association
- H. pylori testing: subset of ~940 participants; infection status unrelated to beverage intake
Official Statements & Responses
Dr. Andrew T. Chan, senior researcher at Mass General Brigham, noted the study is the first to show this association in a U.S. population. He cautioned that the observational design cannot prove causality and called for further research into mechanisms such as weight gain, insulin resistance, inflammation, and gut-microbiome changes.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
Media outlets reported the risk multiplier as 2.45 times, about 2.5 times, or “more than double.” The study’s *H. pylori* subset covered only about 940 participants, leaving uncertainty about the bacterium’s broader role. Lack of ethnic diversity limits generalizability to non-white populations.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Gastric cancer is the fifth-leading cause of cancer death worldwide, but we’ve known very little about how diet might contribute to this cancer,” — Dr. Andrew Chan
- “I think it can definitely sound alarming when you hear higher risk doubles your risk, and it doesn’t necessarily mean that if you drink regular sweetened beverages it’s going to directly cause cancer,” — Maggie Walker
What’s Next
The authors call for additional research to confirm the association and investigate underlying mechanisms, including weight gain, insulin resistance, inflammation, DNA damage, and gut-microbiome alterations. Future studies will need more diverse participant pools and comprehensive *H. pylori* data.
