Are Sparkling Water and Sugar-Sweetened Beverages Linked to Colorectal Cancer?

Household favorites such as sparkling water and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) could be joining the list of foods and beverages linked to colorectal cancer. Though scientists are still investigating the exact nature of this link, the subject has recently gained significant traction on social media, largely through influencer-backed messaging claiming that such beverages are carcinogenic. Here is what we know about the current evidence linking canned sparkling water and SSBs to colorectal cancer.

There has been a recent surge in influencer-made social media content targeting canned sparkling water and similar beverages, with certain online personalities claiming that the beverages contain undisclosed chemicals that cause colorectal cancer. Most content, such as this short video on Instagram, claims that the cancer-causing agents in these beverages are a class of chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which are used in the lining of the cans.

PFAS are synthetic ‘forever chemicals.’ The term ‘forever chemicals’ alludes to their inability to be broken down by heat, water, or oil, which is the reason they are used in products like non-stick cookware and food packaging. However, because PFAS are stable under such a wide variety of conditions, they cannot be broken down in nature or in the human body and often accumulate in the environment and even in our blood. High levels of PFAS exposure have been linked to serious health complications, including endocrine disruption and birth defects.

Though research has linked PFAS exposure to certain cancers, including kidney and testicular cancers, its role in the development of colorectal cancer has not been as extensively studied. Moreover, in an interview with HuffPost, Steven Lee-Kong, MD, division chief of colorectal surgery at Hackensack University Medical Center, detailed that PFAS levels found in sparkling water and similar canned beverages are well below current regulatory limits.

Further evidence is required to strengthen the causative link between PFAS in canned beverages and an increased risk for colorectal cancer. However, PFAS may not be the only factor linking such beverages to cancer.

In 2019, following a publication by Jihye Yun, PhD, at the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation, sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) faced similar scrutiny for their potential to cause cancer. Several studies over the past half-decade have also concluded that SSBs were indeed linked to increased colorectal cancer risk; however, this link was found to be mediated by sugar, rather than PFAS.

In 2024, Yun’s team at UT MD Anderson found that consuming the equivalent of one can of sweetened soda per day increased the number and size of tumors in laboratory models, even in the absence of weight gain. Prior scientific evidence linked sugar to an increased risk of cancer development and progression through obesity. The study, therefore, was critical in understanding that obesity is not the sole driver of the carcinogenic effects of sugar. Further research by Yun’s team also found that the consumption of SSBs was linked not only with increased risk of developing colorectal cancer, but also with an increased risk of metastases if already diagnosed with the disease.

Therefore, while current evidence for PFAS exposure from canned sparkling water and associated beverages is lacking, sugary beverages have been more clearly linked to increased colorectal cancer risk.