UK cohort analysis links “very hot” tea or coffee preference to higher esophageal SCC risk

Analysis of 977,282 participants in two UK cohorts

Researchers analyzed two UK cohorts—the Million Women Study and UK Biobank—covering 977,282 participants. ScienceAlert reports that people who described their tea or coffee as “very hot” had a 3.17-fold higher relative risk of esophageal SCC during the study period than people who preferred warm drinks. Temperature preference was self-reported rather than measured in degrees.

According to the article, evidence on hot drinks consumed at temperatures more typical in Western populations had been inconclusive.

The reported analysis found a 3.17-fold higher relative risk of esophageal SCC among participants preferring “very hot” drinks than among those preferring warm drinks, after accounting for drinking frequency. This observational result does not establish that drink temperature causes cancer.

Temperature preference was reported rather than measured

The reported association addresses a question the article says had remained unclear: whether risks associated with very hot beverages also extend to the temperatures at which hot drinks are commonly consumed in Western populations. Its observational design and subjective temperature categories limit what can be concluded about cause.