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Sugary Drinks Linked to 2.45x Higher Stomach Cancer Risk

Bar chart-style illustration showing sugar-sweetened beverages linked to 2.45 times higher stomach cancer risk compared to diet drinks, based on a US cohort study of over 112,000 adults.

Last updated: August 21, 2026 

[Key Takeaways]

  • A decades-long study of 112,284 US adults, drawing on data from the Nurses' Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study, examined the link between sugary drink consumption and stomach cancer.
  • Adults who drank sugar-sweetened beverages more than once a day had a hazard ratio of 2.45 (95% CI 1.49–4.04) for stomach cancer compared to those who rarely or never drank them.
  • Artificially sweetened (diet) drinks were not associated with an increased risk in this study.
  • Researchers say this is the first US-based study to report this particular association.
  • Switching toward unsweetened beverages may be worth discussing with a healthcare provider, especially for people with additional risk factors.
This article is intended for general informational purposes and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Please consult a licensed healthcare professional regarding your own health situation.

It is written in the hope that it can be of even a little help to many readers.

Overview

A new analysis from researchers at Mass General Brigham has drawn attention to a possible link between daily consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages and stomach cancer risk among US adults. Using decades of dietary data from two long-running cohort studies, the researchers found that people who reported drinking sugary beverages more than once a day had a substantially higher hazard ratio for stomach cancer compared to those who consumed them rarely or not at all. Notably, the same pattern did not appear for artificially sweetened, or "diet," beverages. Below, we walk through what the study actually measured, how the research was conducted, what the numbers mean in practical terms, and what this could mean for everyday beverage choices.

What the New Study Found: Sugary Drinks and a 2.45x Stomach Cancer Risk

Researchers at Mass General Brigham analyzed dietary and health data collected from more than 112,000 US adults over several decades, looking specifically at whether habitual consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages was associated with a later diagnosis of stomach cancer. Adults who reported drinking sugary beverages more than once a day had a hazard ratio of 2.45 (95% CI 1.49–4.04) for stomach cancer, compared to adults who rarely or never consumed them.[1]

[1] Chan et al., Gastro Hep Advances (2026)

This means the group with the highest reported sugary drink intake developed stomach cancer at a notably higher rate than the group with the lowest intake, after researchers accounted for other known risk factors. This appears to be the first US-based research to report an association of this kind between sugar-sweetened beverage intake and stomach cancer.[1] Stomach cancer, also known as gastric cancer, remains relatively uncommon in the United States compared to some other cancers, but it is often diagnosed at a later stage, which makes prevention-focused research like this particularly relevant.[2]

[1] Chan et al., Gastro Hep Advances (2026)
[2] American Cancer Society, Stomach Cancer Key Statistics (2026)

How the Study Tracked More Than 112,000 US Adults for Decades

This research relied on a prospective cohort design, meaning participants were enrolled before any of them had been diagnosed with stomach cancer, and their health outcomes were then observed as time passed. Participants periodically completed detailed dietary questionnaires that captured how often they consumed various beverages, including sugar-sweetened sodas, fruit drinks, and artificially sweetened alternatives. Diagnoses of stomach cancer that occurred during the follow-up period were confirmed through medical records rather than relying solely on self-report.[1]

[1] Chan et al., Gastro Hep Advances (2026)

This type of long-term, repeated-measurement design is generally considered a strong approach for studying diet and chronic disease, because it reduces the risk of participants inaccurately recalling past habits after already knowing their diagnosis.[1]

[1] American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, NHS/HPFS cohort study (2022)

The Nurses' Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-Up Study Cohorts

The data came from two well-established, long-running research cohorts: the Nurses' Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. Both cohorts have followed large groups of US health professionals for decades, regularly collecting information on diet, lifestyle, and health outcomes. These cohorts have previously contributed to a substantial body of research on diet and chronic disease risk, which is part of why researchers considered them a suitable source for examining this question.[1]

[1] American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, NHS/HPFS cohort study (2022)

What a 2.45 Hazard Ratio (95% CI 1.49–4.04) Actually Means

A hazard ratio compares the rate at which an event, in this case a stomach cancer diagnosis, occurred in one group relative to another group over the study period. A hazard ratio of 2.45 suggests that, within this specific study population and after adjusting for other factors, the rate of stomach cancer diagnoses among frequent sugary drink consumers was about 2.45 times that of infrequent or non-consumers.

The "95% CI 1.49–4.04" refers to the 95% confidence interval, a statistical range that reflects the uncertainty around that estimate. Because the entire interval falls above 1.0, the association is considered statistically meaningful in this dataset, but the wide range (from 1.49 to 4.04) also indicates some imprecision, which is common in studies examining a relatively uncommon cancer. It is important to note that a hazard ratio describes relative risk between groups, not the absolute probability that any individual will develop stomach cancer. Since stomach cancer is uncommon overall in the US population, even a meaningfully elevated relative risk translates to a modest increase in absolute risk for most individuals.[1]

[1] American Cancer Society, Stomach Cancer Key Statistics (2026)

Sugary Drinks vs. Artificially Sweetened Drinks: Why Only One Was Linked to Risk

One of the more notable aspects of this research is what it did not find. When the researchers examined intake of artificially sweetened, or "diet," beverages, they did not observe a similarly elevated risk of stomach cancer.[1] This distinction suggests that something specific to sugar-sweetened beverages, rather than the act of drinking beverages in general or a shared lifestyle pattern among frequent beverage drinkers, may be driving the observed association.

[1] Chan et al., Gastro Hep Advances (2026)

This contrast is scientifically useful because it helps rule out some alternative explanations. If diet drinks carried the same risk pattern as sugary drinks, it might suggest that some other shared characteristic of frequent beverage drinkers, such as overall dietary quality or a sedentary lifestyle, was responsible for the finding. Instead, the fact that only the sugar-sweetened category showed an association points more specifically toward sugar itself, or something closely tied to it, as the variable of interest.[1]

[1] Chan et al., Gastro Hep Advances (2026)

Why Sugar-Sweetened Beverages May Raise Stomach Cancer Risk

It is important to emphasize that this study identified an association, not a confirmed cause-and-effect relationship. Observational research of this kind cannot, on its own, prove that sugary drinks directly cause stomach cancer. That said, researchers have proposed several biological pathways that may help explain why a link could exist.

One possibility involves the broader metabolic effects of regularly consuming large amounts of added sugar, including its contribution to excess body weight and insulin resistance over time, both of which have separately been studied in relation to several cancer types.[1] Notably, the researchers specifically examined whether the sugary-drink association could be explained by Helicobacter pylori infection — a well-established contributor to stomach cancer risk in general — and found no such correlation in this cohort, pointing instead toward a metabolic rather than an infection-mediated pathway.[2] Researchers have also pointed to possible effects related to chronic low-grade inflammation associated with high sugar intake.[1]

[1] Cancer Treatment and Research Communications review (2025)
[2] Gastric Cancer, H. pylori burden study (2025); Chan et al., Gastro Hep Advances (2026)

None of these mechanisms are considered fully confirmed explanations for the finding in this particular study, and further research is likely needed to clarify whether, and how, sugar-sweetened beverages contribute biologically to stomach cancer risk.

What to Drink Instead: Cutting Back on Sugary Beverages

For readers interested in reducing sugar-sweetened beverage intake, several general categories of alternatives may be worth considering, though individual circumstances vary and specific choices are best discussed with a healthcare provider.

  • Water. Plain water remains a widely recommended default replacement for sugary beverages and carries no added sugar or calories.
  • Unsweetened tea. Brewed tea without added sugar or syrup can offer variety in flavor while avoiding the added sugar found in many bottled or sweetened tea products.
  • Unsweetened coffee. Black coffee or coffee with modest amounts of milk, without added sugar, contains little to no added sugar or extra calories.
  • Sparkling or flavored water without added sugar. Unsweetened carbonated water, sometimes with a natural fruit infusion rather than added syrup, may serve as an alternative for people who prefer more texture or flavor than plain water offers.

For beverages that contain caffeine, such as coffee and tea, it is worth noting that pregnant individuals and those who are breastfeeding are generally advised to be mindful of total daily caffeine intake, since research has linked higher caffeine intake during pregnancy to an increased risk of pregnancy loss in a dose-dependent pattern.[1] Anyone who is pregnant, breastfeeding, or planning a pregnancy should talk to their healthcare provider about an appropriate caffeine intake level for their situation, rather than relying on a general guideline.

[1] ACOG Committee Opinion, Moderate Caffeine Consumption During Pregnancy; Jafari et al., Frontiers in Nutrition (2022)

People managing diabetes or prediabetes should also be thoughtful about both sugar and artificial sweetener intake as they adjust their beverage choices, since individual tolerance and interactions with medication can vary.[1] Talking with a healthcare provider or registered dietitian about how any beverage changes fit into an existing care plan is a reasonable step before making significant dietary changes.

[1] Debras et al., Diabetes Care (2023)

References

  1. Chan AT, et al. "Association between sugar-sweetened and artificially sweetened beverage intake and gastric cancer incidence." Gastro Hep Advances. Published online August 17, 2026. https://www.ghadvances.org/article/S2772-5723(26)00218-9/fulltext
  2. American Cancer Society. "Stomach (Gastric) Cancer Key Statistics." 2026. https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/stomach-cancer/key-statistics.html
  3. "Sugar-sweetened beverage and sugar consumption and colorectal cancer incidence and mortality according to anatomic subsite." American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2022. https://ajcn.nutrition.org/article/S0002-9165(22)00274-X/fulltext
  4. "The role of dietary sugars in cancer risk: A comprehensive review of current evidence." Cancer Treatment and Research Communications. 2025. DOI: 10.1016/j.ctarc.2025.100876. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39922003/
  5. "Burden of gastric cancer attributable to Helicobacter pylori in 27 countries from seven geographic regions in 2022." Gastric Cancer. 2025. DOI: 10.1007/s10120-025-01677-9. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10120-025-01677-9
  6. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). Committee Opinion: "Moderate Caffeine Consumption During Pregnancy." https://www.acog.org/clinical/clinical-guidance/committee-opinion/articles/2010/08/moderate-caffeine-consumption-during-pregnancy
  7. Jafari A, Naghshi S, Shahinfar H, et al. "Relationship between maternal caffeine and coffee intake and pregnancy loss, gestational age, birth weight, and small for gestational age babies: A systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis." Frontiers in Nutrition. 2022. DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2022.886224. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2022.886224
  8. Debras C, et al. "Artificial Sweeteners and Risk of Type 2 Diabetes in the Prospective NutriNet-Santé Cohort." Diabetes Care. 2023. https://diabetesjournals.org/care/article/46/9/1681/153434
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