Across cultures and continents, the ritual of a hot drink has long been a gesture of comfort and connection — yet science now asks us to pause before the first sip. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified beverages consumed above 65°C as probably carcinogenic, finding that it is heat, not the drink itself, that quietly damages the oesophageal lining over years of repeated exposure. The risk is most visible in South American communities where mate is drunk near-boiling and frequently, but the pattern is beginning to surface wherever scalding beverages are a daily devotion
Hot Beverages Linked to Oesophageal Cancer Risk, WHO Warns
The temperature, not the beverage, is what demands attention.
Mark
So the IARC put very hot drinks in the same category as red meat and wood smoke. That sounds serious. How confident are they in this link?
Mimi
They classified it as probably carcinogenic, which is their second-highest category. It's not definitive proof, but the evidence is strong enough that they felt obligated to flag it publicly.
Luke
Right—and that classification is based largely on studies from South America where mate consumption is extremely high and frequent. We should be careful about assuming the same risk applies to someone who has one hot coffee a day in London.
Mark
Fair point. So what's the actual mechanism? Why does heat damage the oesophagus?
Mimi
Repeated exposure to very high temperatures causes inflammation and injury to the tissue lining. Over time, as the tissue tries to repair itself, cellular changes can accumulate and eventually turn cancerous.
Luke
But we're talking about beverages above 65 degrees Celsius. Most people probably don't know how hot that actually is or what their coffee temperature is when they drink it.
Mark
True. So what's the practical advice here?
Mimi
Let it cool. Mix it with milk. Leave the lid off. Small changes that don't require giving up the ritual, just adjusting the temperature.
Luke
And those recommendations are based on the assumption that cooling the drink meaningfully reduces exposure. Which makes sense, but I'd want to see the dose-response data spelled out more clearly.
Mark
Does this mean people in South America need to change their mate culture?
Mimi
That's the real question. The research suggests the risk is real, especially with frequent consumption. But changing a centuries-old tradition is complicated.
Luke
And we don't have perfect data on how many people in those regions would actually get cancer versus how many drink mate regularly. The correlation is there, but the individual risk is still relatively small.
Der Puls
- A beloved daily ritual — the steaming morning cup — has been quietly implicated in a serious long-term health risk, unsettling the comfort millions take for granted.
- The IARC's classification of very hot drinks as 'probably carcinogenic' places them alongside red meat and indoor wood smoke, a comparison that has sharpened public attention.
- In South America, where mate is consumed at roughly 70°C multiple times a day, researchers have already documented elevated oesophageal cancer rates — a real-world signal that the laboratory findings cannot ignore.
- The danger accumulates invisibly over years, with no immediate symptoms to prompt alarm, making the silence of the risk its most treacherous quality.
- Health experts are steering people not toward abandonment of the ritual but toward simple adjustments — cooling, diluting, waiting — that can meaningfully reduce exposure without surrendering the pleasure of a warm cup.
Across cultures and continents, the ritual of a hot drink has long been a gesture of comfort and connection — yet science now asks us to pause before the first sip. The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified beverages consumed above 65°C as probably carcinogenic, finding that it is heat, not the drink itself, that quietly damages the oesophageal lining over years of repeated exposure. The risk is most visible in South American communities where mate is drunk near-boiling and frequently, but the pattern is beginning to surface wherever scalding beverages are a daily devotion. The wisdom here is not abstinence, but patience — a few minutes of cooling standing between habit and harm.
The morning habit of cradling a steaming mug may carry a cost that only reveals itself over decades. Research now links beverages consumed above 65°C — very hot coffee, tea, or traditionally prepared mate — to an increased risk of oesophageal cancer when drunk regularly over time.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer has placed very hot drinks in the same probable carcinogen category as red meat and indoor wood smoke. Crucially, the danger lies not in the coffee or tea itself, but in the temperature. Repeated heat exposure gradually damages the tissue lining the oesophagus, and that damage can accumulate into cancerous changes across years or decades.
The clearest evidence comes from South America, where mate is often consumed at around 70°C, sometimes several times a day. Researchers have observed significantly higher rates of oesophageal cancer in these communities — a pattern that points squarely at temperature rather than the drink's chemistry. Similar correlations are now beginning to emerge in Western populations with their own habits of very hot coffee and tea, with risk rising alongside frequency and volume of consumption.
The reassuring conclusion is that the ritual need not be abandoned. Waiting a few minutes before drinking, adding milk to lower the temperature, or leaving a lid off to let steam escape are all effective and effortless adjustments. The beverage itself is not the problem — only the urgency with which we reach for it while it is still scalding.
The morning ritual of wrapping your hands around a steaming mug might carry a hidden cost. Research now suggests that beverages heated above 65 degrees Celsius—roughly the temperature of very hot coffee fresh from a pot, or mate as traditionally prepared in South America—can increase the risk of oesophageal cancer when consumed regularly over time.
The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified very hot drinks as probably carcinogenic to humans, placing them in the same risk category as red meat and indoor wood smoke. The culprit is not the coffee, tea, or mate itself, but the temperature at which these drinks are consumed. The tissue lining the oesophagus, when repeatedly exposed to extreme heat, sustains damage that can accumulate into cancerous changes over years or decades.
The evidence is sharpest in regions where scalding beverages are deeply embedded in daily life. In parts of South America, mate—a traditional drink made from yerba mate leaves—is often consumed at around 70 degrees Celsius, sometimes multiple times daily. Researchers have observed notably higher rates of oesophageal cancer in these populations, a pattern that points directly to the temperature exposure rather than any property of the drink itself.
As scientists have begun studying Western populations with their own habits of very hot coffee and tea, a similar correlation is emerging. The risk appears to climb with frequency and volume: someone who drinks scalding beverages several times a day faces greater danger than someone who does so occasionally. The damage accumulates silently, with no immediate warning signs, making prevention through simple habit changes all the more important.
The good news is that the solution requires no sacrifice of the ritual itself. Letting a beverage cool for a few minutes before drinking, mixing hot coffee or tea with milk to lower the temperature, or simply leaving the lid off a cup to allow steam to escape can all reduce the risk substantially. Health experts emphasize that moderation and these cooling methods allow people to preserve the comfort and pleasure of hot drinks without the elevated cancer risk. The temperature, not the beverage, is what demands attention.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
The temperature, rather than the drink itself, is to blame— Research findings cited in IARC classification
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