Caffeinated Coffee Cuts Mouth and Throat Cancer by Almost 50%

The results of a new 26 year long study was just published by The American Cancer Society.

The study concluded that people who drink more than 4 cups of caffeinated coffee daily have a 49 percent lower risk of developing cancers of the mouth and throat.

This is good news because these cancers are often fatal.

The Basics of the Cancer Study

Researchers studied almost 1 million men and women who were cancer-free at the beginning of the 26 year period.

After 26 years 868 people died from mouth and/or throat cancers. By analyzing the lifestyle habits of both the living and the deceased, they concluded that caffeinated coffee lowers cancer risk significantly.

These findings were independent from risks associated with smoking, alcohol, and sex.

Those who consumed 4 or more cups a day had the least risk (49%) and the risk increased by each fewer cups of coffee consumed. Decaffeinated coffee only had a marginally significant decrease in risk, while tea showed no decreased risk.

Coffee is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world, and contains a variety of antioxidants, polyphenols, and other biologically active compounds that may help to protect against development or progression of cancers,” –  Janet Hildebrand, MPH (lead researcher)

What Does This Mean?

If you are a coffee drinker and don’t have any adverse reactions to the caffeine, then it is probably beneficial to keep drinking coffee as part of a healthy diet.

It also shows us that natural coffee is the best. Coffee that has been altered, i.e. decaffeinated, doesn’t seem to offer the same health benefits since some of the antioxidants may also be stripped away during the decaffeinating process.

Coffee isn’t some magical potion that will guarantee a person remains cancer free, but as part of a healthy whole foods diet, it can be a good beverage choice to promote overall better health and less cancer risk.