Sugary drinks raise cancer risk for women, study finds

http://www.nbcnews.com/health/step-away-soda-sugary-drinks-raise-cancer-risk-women-study-2D11641447

Maggie Fox NBC News
Nov. 22, 2013

Women who drank the most sweet soft drinks had a 78 percent increased risk of the cancer, researchers found. But other sweet treats, such as baked goods, didn’t have an effect. Nor did natural fruit juice, even though it’s full of naturally occurring sugars.

The findings fit in with other research linking sugar intake, obesity and a lack of exercise with the cancer, which kills more than 8,000 U.S. women a year.

“Other studies have shown increasing consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages has paralleled the increase in obesity.

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It might not be anything special about sugary drinks, the researchers say. It might be that women who drink a lot of such drinks have other unhealthy habits, too.

And Inoue-Choi says it’s not clear why drinks and not other sweet foods showed an effect. “One possibility is that sugar from whole foods comes with other nutrients, such as fiber,” she said in a telephone interview. “Sugar from beverages doesn’t come with these nutrients.”

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There are two main types of endometrial cancer, according to the National Cancer Institute – Type I and Type II. Inoue-Choi and colleagues found that sweetened drinks only affected Type I risk. But Type I accounts for 80 percent of endometrial cancers.

It’s usually diagnosed early, in time for treatment, because in 90 percent of cases the woman has abnormal bleeding, the American Cancer Society says.