Very Hot Coffee/Tea Increases risk of Cancer

[mollusk]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article5983480.ece

I've always hated it when tea is served at near-boiling temperatures. Turns out I was right.

[fyrenwater]

You'd think the searing pain of boiling liquid going down one's throat would clue people in that it's not a good idea...

What about hot water? Or soup? Is it just the temperature that causes problems or is it something in coffee/tea that causes problems when that hot?

[Jahoclave]

Question, does anybody actually give a shit about what causes cancer anymore? Do you hear that something causes cancer and radically change your lifestyle. At this point every article should just say "Fuck it, if something else doesn't get you you're getting cancer."

[Bulvox]

Relevant comic is relevant.

[Jack Saladin]

Doesn't literally nearly everybody who dies near the end of the average life expectancy die with some form of cancer, whether or not it killed them? Nearly everything "gives" you cancer because it's pretty much inevitable. It's a feature of our genetic build. Who really thought we were built perfect?

[Jahoclave]

Doesn't literally nearly everybody who dies near the end of the average life expectancy die with some form of cancer, whether or not it killed them? Nearly everything "gives" you cancer because it's pretty much inevitable. It's a feature of our genetic build. Who really thought we were built perfect?

Creationists.



You really left yourself open to that one.

[Jack Saladin]

Oh yeah, I forgot about stupid people.

[el_loco_avs]

Scientists should totally troll and release a study saying "going outside increases cancer risk"

[^.*]

Scientists should totally troll and release an study saying "going outside increases cancer risk"

Do still go outside O_o. Just look up and you will see a evil gigantic gas ball which causes skin cancer with it`s murderous light. Seriously I can`t understand the people who don`t prefer a stonewall between themselves and this diabolic thing.*goes and hides underground*

[Darkscull]

Scientists should totally troll and release an study saying "going outside increases cancer risk"

Do still go outside O_o. Just look up and you will see a evil gigantic gas ball which causes skin cancer with it`s murderous light. Seriously I can`t understand the people who don`t prefer a stonewall between themselves and this diabolic thing.*goes and hides underground*

Lack of sunlight probably causes cancer, you know.

[headprogrammingczar]

YOU cause cancer!
I find it funny that with all of these sorts of studies, they find a statistical correlation and release their "results" without knowing why they got them.

[psyck0]

I heard in one of my university courses that we get cancer about 7 times a day, and our body gets rid of it (most of the time the cells kill themselves because they realise something went wrong). I've never seen that cited formally, but I'm pretty sure a prof said it.

[Darkscull]

I heard in one of my university courses that we get cancer about 7 times a day, and our body gets rid of it (most of the time the cells kill themselves because they realise something went wrong). I've never seen that cited formally, but I'm pretty sure a prof said it.

It's probably right if you define "cancer" as mutated cells.

I'm not sure whether that is correct though, since mutated cells aren't always going to reproduce enough to be a tumour or anything.

I may be talking bollocks though.

[psyck0]

I'm pretty sure he meant cancer, as in mutations that cause rapid cell growth. That's cancer. The cells just lacked the OTHER mutation that makes them not kill themselves when this happens, or makes them unidentifiable to the immune system so it can't take care of them.

[Darkscull]

Actually, yeah. I just thought about the massive number of cells we have and 7 times a day is tiny. There must be millions of mutations a day in general.

[psyck0]

Well, I'm pretty sure that at least as far as DNA replication is concerned, DNA polymerase makes an error about 1 every million base pairs (after proofreading occurs). Thymine dimers happen fairly frequently I think, due to UV light. Not a cell biologist so I don't know much more.

[lesliesage]

I heard in one of my university courses that we get cancer about 7 times a day, and our body gets rid of it (most of the time the cells kill themselves because they realise something went wrong). I've never seen that cited formally, but I'm pretty sure a prof said it.

It's probably right if you define "cancer" as mutated cells.

Haha, that's hilarious. Yep, the point is that "cancer" is a mutation that causes funky replication and is not contained by the immune system. I mean, we die a million times a week if you define "die" as "any cell death."

[Amarantha]

I shall unrepentantly continue to drink my tea and water at just-boiled temperature (it's all in the slurp). I figure everything is going to give me cancer eventually.

[el_loco_avs]

Lack of sunlight probably causes cancer, you know.

Sunlight causes cancer.
Lack of sunlight causes cancer.



Srsly, let's make a public health scare on both at the same time.

[netcrusher88]

Srsly, let's make a public health scare on both at the same time.

Oh please don't. 60 SPF is ridiculous enough, we don't need that number climbing until we see people on the beach (for fear of cancer from no sun) coated in zinc oxide (for fear of cancer from the sun). Although that would be hilarious.

[Zamfir]

I am sure I once read an article that had tested feeding large amounts of peanut butter to mice, and concluded that eating the mouse-equivalent of 600 grams of peanut butter every day increased cancer rates.

[Julien]

Relevant comic is relevant.

That is so true !

Every day there's a new claim of a risk of Cancer. But in fact, we still don't know what really causes Cancer. We just can make statistics and observe whenever there's a prominence of Cancer. So, it's very easy to consider something as responsible for Cancer - "hey guys, three of my mices developped tumors after being feed exclusively with bananas ! Henceforth, bananas causes Cancer !"

In a few months, it is possible that another study "proves" it's good to drink hot tea to prevent cancer. So what's the point ?

[Goldstein]

It seems pretty well documented that anti-oxidants in tea reduce risk of cancer, and I recall reading that adding milk to the tea ruins the benefit.
In the BBC article about how really hot tea is bad and causes cancer, they also mentioned that adding milk to the tea cools it enough to prevent this.

So yes, good luck.

[crowey]

It seems pretty well documented that anti-oxidants in tea reduce risk of cancer, .

Not so much, some antioxidants might reduce the risk of cancer. The media coverage is a bit over excited.

I liked the BBC's biology newspeak "food tube".

[segmentation fault]

but what about those antioxidant thingies?!

[Sharlos]

Honestly, even if I was to get cancer, by the time I got it there will likely be a cure/treatment for it by then.

[Darkscull]

The onion or something should run with the headline:

Worrying about cancer causes cancer.


It's probably true as well.

[black rook in rainy weather]

hehe, Woody Allen, ahead of his time again. In, I think, Annie Hall, complaining about arbitrary things causing cancer, and thinking these things for no logical reason. Everything is bad for you. My english teacher once said that even oxygen, while allowing the growth of cells, also decays them, causing you to grow old, and die. It was a sobering thought. And damn relevant I think. We may have even been studying Sylvia Plath's 'Mirror' at the time. Anyway, yeah, for one in three its gonna getcha that cancer, regardless

[Vieto]

Cancer Causes Cancer!

[Magic Smoothie]

Also, not all the flavors of the tea can come out from the leaf in a black tea if it's under 90°C when it's brewed (this is why mountains suck.) If you're making a white or green tea, though, you shouldn't have to let it cool much; over 80° will scald a green; 60° for a white.

Teflon is supposed to cause cancer, but I think most people still use nonstick pans.

[phlip]

Studies show that Science causes increased rates of cancer in laboratory rats.

And (slightly) more seriously: it wouldn't surprise me if oxygen was carcinogenic. It's quite nasty stuff, really. It ought to be banned, for our protection.

[Sporefrog]

An increase in mutation rate is, by definition, an increase in cancer rate. Cancer is, in most cases (say, a tumor virus), a buildup of mutations of genes ANY single cell that cause it to divide uncontrollably, and override the many safety mechanisms the body has in place. There is a base-line mutation rate. That's why, over time, many people develop cancer. The chance is always there, and certain things influence that rate. Putting aside everything that might contribute to cancer is probably an unwise idea -- tea though? That might be pushing it

[el_loco_avs]

An increase in mutation rate is, by definition, an increase in cancer rate. Cancer is, in most cases (say, a tumor virus), a buildup of mutations of genes ANY single cell that cause it to divide uncontrollably, and override the many safety mechanisms the body has in place. There is a base-line mutation rate. That's why, over time, many people develop cancer. The chance is always there, and certain things influence that rate. Putting aside everything that might contribute to cancer is probably an unwise idea -- tea though? That might be pushing it

AGEING CAUSES CANCER!

Srsly, let's make a public health scare on both at the same time.

Oh please don't. 60 SPF is ridiculous enough, we don't need that number climbing until we see people on the beach (for fear of cancer from no sun) coated in zinc oxide (for fear of cancer from the sun). Although that would be hilarious.

BUT ZINC OXIDE ALSO CAUSES CANCER!

The onion or something should run with the headline:

Worrying about cancer causes cancer.


It's probably true as well.

*head explodes*

[^.*]

I must warn you all, making fun of all the cancer risk surely causes cancer.

[Chfan]

Breathing causes cancer. Every second you are alive, you get close to getting cancer.

[Vieto]

death causes cancer, or was it the other way around?

[Jebobek]

I respond to the researchers saying "Doing cancer research gives you cancer." Then I'd lower a disco ball from the ceiling and we'd start dancing.

Considering that eventual cancer is an endpoint that we can't (currently) 100% avoid through contemporary science, I'd say that "Very Hot Coffee/Tea Increases risk of Dying Earlier" would, to me, make more sense. As in, you want to avoid the cancers that make you die earlier than what you'd want, or make you feel like crap for the final 10 years of your life. Then I guess those that give a damn would pay attention.

['; DROP DATABASE;--]

Studies show that Science causes increased rates of cancer in laboratory rats.

And (slightly) more seriously: it wouldn't surprise me if oxygen was carcinogenic. It's quite nasty stuff, really. It ought to be banned, for our protection.

This is what I've always said. Oxygen is the only thing that causes Cancer.

Also, epic win.

Also in response to the OP, what about hot showers or hot chocolate or other candy?

[Indon]

The onion or something should run with the headline:

Worrying about cancer causes cancer.


It's probably true as well.

No, no.

Thinking about cancer. Including reading the article.

I only seriously drink iced coffee (drinks that have little to do with actual coffee but may incidentally contain some), so I'm good.

[benjhuey]

Cancer causes cancer.