Dinuka Liyanawatte/Reuters
A new study has found that sipping tea that’s too hot could dramatically increase your risk of cancer. Scientists tracked the habits of more than 50,000 tea drinkers in Golestan, Iran, for one decade and found that those who drank more than 700 ml (almost 24 ounces) of tea a day at a temperature of 60 degrees Celsius (140 degrees Fahrenheit) had a 90 percent higher risk of developing esophageal cancer. “Based on the results of our study, drinking hot tea is associated with an increased risk of esophageal cancer,” lead author Farhad Islami said. During that same 10-year period, 317 new cases of esophageal cancer were reported. The American Cancer Society estimates about 17,650 new cases of esophageal cancer will be diagnosed in the U.S. in 2019. While Americans typically drink beverages like coffee, tea, and hot chocolate at lower temperatures, many in South America, Asia, and Africa drink their tea beverages at a much hotter temperature.