a study by Harvard University In collaboration with researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, the aim was “to analyze the relationship between consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages, artificially sweetened beverages, and development of liver cancer, and liver disease related mortality chronicle”.
Longgang Zhao, a postdoctoral researcher at Brigham University, recently published a study @CNN Article about sugary drinks causing liver problems in older women. Learn more: https://t.co/YGDM3QXuKi
— Brigham and Women’s Hospital (@BrighamWomens) August 14, 2023
Increased risk of death from chronic liver disease
About 40% of people suffer from liver cancer Absence of one of the traditionally recognized risk factors, such as chronic infection Hepatitis B or C, type 2 diabetes, or obesity. Through the ongoing analysis, Dr. Zhao and his team aim to investigate whether sugary or artificially sweetened beverages consumed by a large portion of the population may be a risk factor for the development of breast cancer. .
For analysis, a sample is required 98,786 women The age range for postmenopausal women in the United States is 50 and 79 years. These participants provided the researchers with information on how often they drank a sugary drink Use ranges from “never or less than once a month” to “six or more times a day.”
After two decades of exhaustive follow-up, it was concluded that the health outcomes of women who drank sugar-sweetened beverages daily high risk There is still a lot to be developed liver cancer like Died from chronic liver disease. Specifically, it was observed that 6.8% of women who drank one or more sugar-sweetened beverages per day were at risk of: 85% increased risk of liver cancer Compared with those who ate three servings or fewer per month, the risk of dying from chronic liver disease increased by 68%.
“If our results are confirmed, reducing consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages may become a public health strategy to reduce the burden of liver disease,” said lead author Longgang Zhao, Ph.D., of Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Interviewed by Medscape Medical News, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA.
Is there really clear evidence?
By examining the consumption of artificially sweetened beverages, Dr Zhao and his team No significant link found between consumption and likelihood of developing liver cancer Or die from chronic liver disease. Due to the limited number of samples used to test artificially sweetened beverages, Dr. Zhao noted, “these results should be interpreted with caution, and more research is needed to confirm our conclusions.”
Previous studies have only indicated a “Possible connection” Association between consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and risk of liver cancer in individuals. In that sense, last month, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) released an official classification that considers the artificial sweetener aspartame a potential carcinogen.
However, cancer epidemiologist Dr. Paul Pharoah emphasized that “there is evidence to support a relationship” Aspartame sweetener and the development of liver cancer Primary cancer or any other type of cancer in humans is very weak.