Coffee and tea may lower the risk of developing head and neck cancer.
Head and neck cancer ranks seventh in prevalence worldwide, with increasing rates observed in low- and middle-income countries. Numerous studies have explored whether coffee or tea consumption is linked to head and neck cancer, but the results have been inconsistent.
To gain more insights, researchers examined data from 14 studies conducted by various scientists involved in the International Epidemiological Consortium for Head and Neck Cancer, which gathers research teams from around the globe. Participants completed questionnaires regarding their previous consumption of caffeinated coffee, decaffeinated coffee, and tea in cups per day/week/month/year.
When researchers combined information from 9,548 head and neck cancer patients and 15,783 patients from control groups without cancer, they found that compared to those who did not consume coffee, individuals drinking more than four cups of caffeinated coffee per day had a 17% lower overall risk of developing head and neck cancer, a 30% lower risk of oral cavity cancer, and a 22% lower risk of throat cancer.
Consuming three to four cups of caffeinated coffee reduced the risk of developing hypopharyngeal cancer (a type of cancer in the lower throat) by 41%.
Decaffeinated coffee consumption lowered the risk of oral cavity cancer by 25%. Tea consumption was associated with a 29% reduction in the likelihood of developing hypopharyngeal cancer. Additionally, consuming one cup of tea per day or less was linked to a 9% decrease in the overall risk of head and neck cancer and a 27% reduction in the risk of hypopharyngeal cancer, while drinking more than one cup was associated with a 38% increase in the likelihood of developing laryngeal cancer.
Biochemical studies have revealed that caffeine exhibits powerful antioxidant activity in tissues. Overall, coffee contains many important components (around 2,000 compounds), including antioxidants , fatty acids (such as linoleic and linolenic, palmitic, and others), chlorogenic acid , and polyphenols , which slow down inflammation, thereby preventing the development of cancer. Coffee polyphenols can reduce the intensity of inflammatory processes by 45%, providing significant protective effects.
“Although previous studies have examined coffee and tea consumption and their role in reducing cancer risk, this research demonstrated their varying effects on different sites of head and neck cancer, including the observation that even decaffeinated coffee has some positive influence,” says the senior author of the study, Yuan-Chin Amy Lee, PhD, a researcher at the Huntsman Cancer Institute and the University of Utah School of Medicine.
The consumption of coffee and tea is a multifaceted process, and these results underscore the need for further data collection and additional research on the impact of coffee and tea on reducing cancer risk.