Coffee or tea lower brain cancer risk

Researchers analysed data concerning the dietary habits of more than 410,000 men and women between the ages of 25 and 70. The study involved participants from France, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Britain, Greece, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Germany. Participants were recruited between 1991 and 2000, and were tracked over the course of about 8.5 years. During that time, food surveys were completed to gauge, among other things, the amount of tea and coffee each participant consumed.

During the study, 343 new cases of glioma were diagnosed, as were 245 new cases of meningioma, another cancer that affects tissue surrounding the brain and spinal cord.

By correlating drinking patterns with brain cancer incidence, the researchers found that drinking 100 mL (or half a cup) per day and above lowered the risk of glioma by 34 per cent.

The study shows that drinking coffee and tea protects against a form of brain cancer called glioma - a cancer of the nervous system that originates in the brain and / or the spinal cord.