A UK study of nearly one million adults has linked very hot beverages to a more than tripled risk of esophageal cancer.
Researchers tracked roughly 980,000 middle-aged Britons for 11 to 14 years, recording 2,348 cases of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), the most common form of the disease. Participants self-reported whether they took their coffee or tea very hot, hot, or warm, and how many cups they drank daily.
Lead study author Keren Papier, a senior nutritional epidemiologist at Oxford Population Health, said: “This is the largest study to date, and it does really add to the evidence that drinking very hot and hot beverages could increase the risk of this type of cancer.”
The findings, published in the International Journal of Cancer, showed a clear temperature gradient of danger. Drinkers who preferred their beverages hot faced twice the risk of esophageal SCC compared to those who liked them warm. For the very-hot crowd, the risk jumped to more than three times higher.
Quantity compounded the threat. Nearly half of all participants reported downing six or more hot drinks per day, and that heavy consumption alone carried a 71 percent higher risk of the cancer. About 15 percent of respondents said they preferred their drinks very hot.
The questionnaire allowed participants to decline answering or note that they skipped hot drinks entirely. Most, however, disclosed habits that now appear troubling in light of the follow-up data.
The global appetite for hot coffee is immense — roughly 3 billion cups are consumed worldwide each day. Many drinkers prize the sensation of a steaming mug, but the new evidence suggests that preference may come with a hidden cost.
The esophageal cancer risk centers specifically on SCC rather than other forms of the disease. The esophagus, the tube carrying food and liquid to the stomach, appears vulnerable to thermal damage that may promote cancerous changes over time.
Health authorities have previously flagged very hot drinks as a probable carcinogen, though large-scale prospective evidence from Western populations has remained limited. The UK Biobank-based study helps fill that gap with its lengthy follow-up and substantial case count.
Papier’s team did not establish a precise temperature threshold for safety. The categories relied on subjective labels — very hot, hot, warm — leaving individual drinkers to gauge where their habits fall.
The research arrives as specialty coffee culture continues to emphasize precise brewing temperatures, though those standards typically target flavor extraction rather than health outcomes. Home drinkers may lack any gauge beyond touch and taste.
The study controlled for multiple factors through the Biobank’s extensive baseline data, though residual confounding from smoking or alcohol — both established esophageal cancer risks — cannot be fully excluded. The sheer size of the cohort, however, lends statistical weight to the temperature findings.
Previous research in Iran, China, and South America, where piping-hot mate tea is traditional, had already suggested a connection between scalding beverages and esophageal cancer. The UK data extends that pattern to a Western population with different baseline risks and beverage preferences.
Public health messaging may now face the challenge of translating these findings into practical guidance. “Warm” remains an imprecise target, and cultural habits around drink temperature are deeply ingrained.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer classified very hot beverages above 65 degrees Celsius (149 degrees Fahrenheit) as “probably carcinogenic to humans” in 2016. Most coffee is brewed between 90 and 96 degrees Celsius, then cools variably depending on serving method, cup material, and patient waiting.
For now, the Oxford team suggests letting steaming cups cool before drinking — a simple behavioral shift that may carry meaningful protective benefit without requiring abstinence from popular beverages.