Full Breakdown
Hot Drink Temperatures Linked to Higher Risk of Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma
By Drooid · · How we work
Study Findings
A pooled analysis of 977,282 British adults from the UK Biobank and the Million Women Study—representing the largest investigation of drink temperature and cancer risk in a Western population—found a strong association between self-reported “very hot” tea or coffee and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). Participants who described their beverages as “very hot” had roughly three times the risk of SCC compared with those who drank them “warm.” Those who reported drinking them “hot” faced about a 1.7-fold higher risk. After adjusting for temperature, consuming six or more hot drinks per day was linked to a 71 % higher risk of SCC. The study recorded 2,348 esophageal cancers, of which 1,045 were SCC. Researchers estimated that about 14 % of SCC cases could be prevented if “very hot” drinkers switched to “hot” temperatures.
Background & Context
Esophageal cancer occurs in two main forms: SCC, historically associated with smoking, heavy alcohol use, and thermal injury, and adenocarcinoma, linked to obesity and reflux. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified beverages above 65 °C as “probably carcinogenic” in 2016, based largely on studies of very hot tea and mate in regions such as Iran and South America. Typical Western coffee and tea are estimated to be served around 60 °C, but the present study relied on participants’ subjective temperature categories rather than measured temperatures.
Data & Statistics
- Study population: ~980,000 UK adults (combined cohorts).
- Follow-up: average 14 years (Million Women Study) and 11 years (UK Biobank).
- SCC risk: 1.7 × higher for “hot,” ~3 × higher for “very hot” versus “warm.”
- Frequency effect: >=6 hot drinks daily -> 71 % higher SCC risk after temperature adjustment.
- Cancer cases recorded: 2,348 esophageal cancers; 1,045 SCC.
- Potential preventable fraction: ~14 % of SCC cases if “very hot” drinkers cooled their beverages.
Official Statements & Responses
Lead author Dr. Keren Papier, senior nutritional epidemiologist at Oxford Population Health, emphasized that the findings add to existing evidence that very hot drinks can increase SCC risk, but she cautioned that the study does not prove causation and that drink temperature, not the beverage itself, appears to be the operative factor. Fiona Osgun, head of health information at Cancer Research UK, reiterated that the overall lifetime risk of SCC in the UK remains low (about 1 %) and that simple measures—letting drinks cool or adding cold milk—can mitigate the temperature-related risk.
Conflicting Reports & Gaps
The study’s primary gap is the absence of direct temperature measurements. As Dr. Papier noted, the lack of objective data prevents determination of how participants’ subjective categories correspond to actual degrees Celsius. Consequently, the estimated preventable fraction rests on an assumed relationship between self-reported categories and the IARC threshold, which may not hold uniformly across the population.
What’s Next
The research team indicated that further work is needed to pinpoint the exact temperature range that drives the increased SCC risk. In the interim, public-health guidance from the study’s authors and Cancer Research UK advises consumers to allow hot beverages to cool to a comfortable sipping temperature or to add cold milk or water, steps that may reduce thermal injury to the esophageal lining.
