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Mehmet Oz, M.D., is host of “The Dr. Oz Show,” and Mike Roizen, M.D., is Chief Wellness Officer and Chair of Wellness Institute at Cleveland Clinic. Email questions to youdocsdaily@sharecare.com.
QUESTION: Now that California is making coffee companies and sellers label their products as cancer-causing, do I have to give up my morning cup or two?
— Jay J., Portland, Oregon
ANSWER: There are three essential points to make right off the bat:
1. While it’s true that the acrylamide that coffee contains after roasting (French fries, chips, crackers, chocolate and grains contain it, too) is the same chemical that the International Agency for Research on Cancer has designated a 2A carcinogen (that boils down to “might or might not be carcinogenic in humans”), it’s not likely to be risky in the minute amounts found in even unhealthful foods.
For example, McDonald’s fries have 328 parts per billion.
How does it get there in the first place? The chemical is formed by using what the Food and Drug Administration calls “traditional high-temperature cooking processes for certain carbohydrate-rich foods.”
2. Those small amounts per billion are far, far, far less than the straight dose of acrylamide fed to lab rats to test whether it is potentially carcinogenic.
Their dose was up to 10,000 times stronger than what you’re getting from food, but it does then trigger tumor formation. Plus, rodents absorb and metabolize the chemical differently than humans.
When asked if the available tests mean that humans should stop drinking coffee, the Washington Post quoted Leonard Lichtenfeld, the American Cancer Society’s deputy chief medical officer, as saying: “No. That’s not what the science shows us.”
3. Meta-analysis of multiple studies on coffee consumption found that overall, coffee seems to offer health benefits, including a probable decreased risk of breast, colorectal, colon, endometrial and prostate cancers and cardiovascular disease.
In addition, observational studies showed that caffeine is associated with a probable decreased risk of Parkinson’s disease, Type 2 diabetes and dementia, all by 20 percent or more.
So, don’t forgo your Joe, but always feel free to ditch added sugars and high-fat dairy.
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