A few days ago, a Los Angeles judge in the US has ruled that coffee shops should have a warning saying that a compound in coffee called acrylamide may pose a possible cancer risk.
Many years ago, the Council for Education and Research on Toxics (CERT) filed a lawsuit that claimed 90 major coffee retailers in California didn't give any kind of warning against the presence of carcinogenic chemicals in the drink, reported Forbes.
If coffee can make you prone to cancer, is switching to tea the only option left? Or tea also has its dangers? To know the answers to these questions, IBT India spoke to a dietician, Pavithra N Raj of Columbia Asia Referral Hospital in the south Indian city of Bengaluru.
"While coffee consumption can lower the serum liver enzyme and trigger insomnia, tea drinkers are at the risk of developing gastric ulcers.Tannic acid present in tea can also lead to iron deficiency and anemia if drank in large quantities," she said.
Moreover, too much consumption of coffee and tea can cause kidney and liver diseases. Drinking hot beverages can also cause esophageal cancer, she added.
However, Pavithra pointed out that both the drinks do benefit our health if taken in regulated quantity.
The dietician said while tea may reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke and also boost immunity, coffee can help overcome short-term memory loss. It also helps people suffering from dementia or Alzheimer's or even type 2 diabetes.
Not just Pavithra, but Researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, reported in 2016 that consumption of coffee, both caffeinated and decaffeinated, decreases the risk of colorectal cancer.
