Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Tea consumption and colorectal cancer risk: a meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies

  • Original Contribution
  • Published:
European Journal of Nutrition Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

Data from in vitro and animal studies support the preventive effect of tea (Camellia sinensis) against colorectal cancer. Further, many epidemiologic studies evaluated the association between tea consumption and colorectal cancer risk, but the results were inconsistent. We conducted a meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies to systematically assess the association between tea consumption and colorectal cancer risk.

Methods

A comprehensive literature review was conducted to identify the related articles by searching PubMed and Embase up to June, 2019. Summary relative risks (RRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using a fixed effect model.

Results

Twenty cohort articles were included in the present meta-analysis involving 2,068,137 participants and 21,437 cases. The combined RR of colorectal cancer for the highest vs. lowest tea consumption was determined to 0.97 (95% CI 0.94–1.01) with marginal heterogeneity (I2 = 24.0%, P = 0.093) among all studies. This indicated that tea consumption had no significant association with colorectal cancer risk. Stratified analysis showed that no significant differences were found in all subgroups. We further conducted the gender-specific meta-analysis for deriving a more precise estimation. No significant association was observed between tea consumption and colorectal cancer risk in male (combined RR = 0.97; 95% CI 0.90–1.04). However, tea consumption had a marginal significant inverse impact on colorectal cancer risk in female (combined RR = 0.93; 95% CI 0.86–1.00). Further, we found a stronger inverse association between tea consumption and risk of colorectal cancer among the female studies with no adjustment of coffee intake (RR: 0.90; 95% CI 0.82–1.00, P < 0.05) compared to the female studies that adjusted for coffee intake (RR = 0.97; 95% CI 0.87–1.09, P > 0.05).

Conclusions

Our finding indicates that tea consumption has no significant impact on the colorectal cancer risk in both genders combined, but gender-specific meta-analysis shows that tea consumption has a marginal significant inverse impact on colorectal cancer risk in female.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Siegel RL, Miller KD, Fedewa SA et al (2017) (2017) Colorectal cancer statistics. Cancer J Clin 67(3):177–193

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Arnold M, Sierra MS, Laversanne M, Soerjomataram I, Jemal A, Bray F (2017) Global patterns and trends in colorectal cancer incidence and mortality. Gut 66(4):683–691

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Bray F, Ferlay J, Soerjomataram I, Siegel RL, Torre LA, Jemal A (2018) Global cancer statistics 2018: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. Cancer J Clin 68(6):394–424

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Li XY, Yu CQ, Guo Y et al (2019) Association between tea consumption and risk of cancer: a prospective cohort study of 0.5 million Chinese adults. Eur J Epidemiol 34(8):753–763

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Zhu MZ, Wen BB, Wu H et al (2019) The quality control of tea by near-infrared reflectance (NIR) spectroscopy and chemometrics. J Spectrosc. https://doi.org/10.1155/2019/8129648

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Zhu MZ, Li N, Zhao M, Yu WL, Wu JL (2017) Metabolomic profiling delineate taste qualities of tea leaf pubescence. Food Res Int 94:36–44

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Yang CS, Maliakal P, Meng XF (2002) Inhibition of carcinogenesis by tea. Annu Rev Pharmacol 42:25–54

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Nakagawa K, Miyazawa T (1997) Chemiluminescence high-performance liquid chromatographic determination of tea catechin, (-)-epigallocatechin 3-gallate, at picomole levels in rat and human plasma. Anal Biochem 248(1):41–49

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Gan RY, Li HB, Sui ZQ, Corke H (2018) Absorption, metabolism, anti-cancer effect and molecular targets of epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG): an updated review. Crit Rev Food Sci 58(6):924–941

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Yang G, Zheng W, Xiang YB et al (2011) Green tea consumption and colorectal cancer risk: a report from the Shanghai Men's Health Study. Carcinogenesis 32(11):1684–1688

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Su LJ, Arab L (2002) Tea consumption and the reduced risk of colon cancer—results from a national prospective cohort study. Public Health Nutr 5(3):419–425

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Dominianni C, Huang WY, Berndt S, Hayes RB, Ahn J (2013) Prospective study of the relationship between coffee and tea with colorectal cancer risk: the PLCO Cancer Screening Trial. Br J Cancer 109(5):1352–1359

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Sinha R, Cross AJ, Daniel CR et al (2012) Caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee and tea intakes and risk of colorectal cancer in a large prospective study. Am J Clin Nutr 96(2):374–381

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  14. Sun CL, Yuan JM, Koh WP, Yu MC (2006) Green tea, black tea and colorectal cancer risk: a meta-analysis of epidemiologic studies. Carcinogenesis 27(7):1301–1309

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Wang XJ, Zeng XT, Duan XL, Zeng HC, Shen R, Zhou P (2012) Association between green tea and colorectal cancer risk: a meta-analysis of 13 case-control studies. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev 13(7):3123–3127

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Wang ZH, Gao QY, Fang JY (2012) Green tea and incidence of colorectal cancer: evidence from prospective cohort studies. Nutr Cancer 64(8):1143–1152

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Chen YT, Wu Y, Du ML et al (2017) An inverse association between tea consumption and colorectal cancer risk. Oncotarget 8(23):37367–37376

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Wada K, Oba S, Tsuji M et al (2019) Green tea intake and colorectal cancer risk in Japan: the Takayama study. Jpn J Clin Oncol 49(6):515–520

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Stang A (2010) Critical evaluation of the Newcastle–Ottawa scale for the assessment of the quality of nonrandomized studies in meta-analyses. Eur J Epidemiol 25(9):603–605

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Duan P, Hu CH, Quan C et al (2015) Body mass index and risk of lung cancer: systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis. Sci Rep Uk. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep16938

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Higgins JPT, Thompson SG, Deeks JJ, Altman DG (2003) Measuring inconsistency in meta-analyses. Br Med J 327(7414):557–560

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Haghighatdoost F, Nobakht BF, Hariri M (2018) Effect of green tea on plasma leptin and ghrelin levels: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled clinical trials. Nutrition 45:17–23

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Goldbohm RA, Hertog MGL, Brants HAM, vanPoppel G, vandenBrandt PA (1996) Consumption of black tea and cancer risk: a prospective cohort study. J Natl Cancer Inst 88(2):93–100

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Zheng W, Doyle TJ, Kushi LH, Sellers TA, Hong CP, Folsom AR (1996) Tea consumption and cancer incidence in a prospective cohort study of postmenopausal women. Am J Epidemiol 144(2):175–182

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Hartman TJ, Tangrea JA, Pietinen P et al (1998) Tea and coffee consumption and risk of colon and rectal cancer in middle-aged Finnish men. Nutr Cancer 31(1):41–48

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Terry P, Wolk A (2001) Tea consumption and the risk of colorectal cancer in Sweden. Nutr Cancer 39(2):176–179

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Nagano J, Kono S, Preston DL, Mabuchi K (2001) A prospective study of green tea consumption and cancer incidence, Hiroshima and Nagasaki (Japan). Cancer Cause Control 12(6):501–508

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Michels KB, Willett WC, Fuchs CS, Giovannucci E (2005) Coffee, tea, and caffeine consumption and incidence of colon and rectal cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst 97(4):282–292

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Suzuki Y, Tsubono Y, Nakaya N et al (2005) Green tea and the risk of colorectal cancer: pooled analysis of two prospective studies in Japan. J Epidemiol 15(4):118–124

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Oba S, Shimizu N, Nagata C et al (2006) The relationship between the consumption of meat, fat, and coffee and the risk of colon cancer: a prospective study in Japan. Cancer Lett 244(2):260–267

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Sun CL, Yuan JM, Koh WP, Lee HP, Yu MC (2007) Green tea and black tea consumption in relation to colorectal cancer risk: the Singapore Chinese Health Study. Carcinogenesis 28(10):2143–2148

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. Yang G, Shu XO, Li HL et al (2007) Prospective cohort study of green tea consumption and colorectal cancer risk in women. Cancer Epidemiol Biomark Prev 16(6):1219–1223

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. Lee KJ, Inoue M, Otani T, Iwasaki M, Sasazuki S, Tsugane S (2007) Coffee consumption and risk of colorectal cancer in a population-based prospective cohort of Japanese men and women. Int J Cancer 121(6):1312–1318

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Suzuki E, Yorifuji T, Takao S et al (2009) Green tea consumption and mortality among Japanese elderly people: the prospective Shizuoka Elderly Cohort. Ann Epidemiol 19(10):732–739

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Simons CCJM, Leurs LJ, Weijenberg MP, Schouten LJ, Goldbohm RA, van den Brandt PA (2010) Fluid intake and colorectal cancer risk in the Netherlands Cohort Study. Nutr Cancer 62(3):307–321

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Nechuta S, Shu XO, Li HL et al (2012) Prospective cohort study of tea consumption and risk of digestive system cancers: results from the Shanghai Women's Health Study. Am J Clin Nutr 96(5):1056–1063

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  37. Goldbohm RA, VandenBrandt PA (1996) Consumption of black tea and cancer risk: a prospective cohort study—response. J Natl Cancer Inst 88(11):768–769

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Yang CS, Wang H (2016) Cancer preventive activities of tea catechins. Molecules. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules21121679

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  39. Weng H, Zeng XT, Li S, Kwong JSW, Liu TZ, Wang XH (2017) Tea consumption and risk of bladder cancer: a dose–response meta-analysis. Front Physiol. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2016.00693

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

This research was funded by National Key R&D Program of China (Grant no. 2018YFC1604405), China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Grant no. 2018M632962), Hunan Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant no. 2019JJ50238), Open Foundation of Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory for Germplasm Innovation and Utilization of Crop (Grant no. 18KFXM10), Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant no. 31901672), Provincial Natural Science Foundation of Anhui (Grant no. 1908085MC57), and Macau Science and Technology Development Fund (Grant no. 009/2017/A1).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Tea Science of Ministry of Education, National Research Center of Engineering Technology for Utilization of Functional Ingredients from Botanicals, College of Horticulture, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha, 410128, China

    Ming-zhi Zhu, Dan-min Lu, Jian Ouyang, Fang Zhou, Pei-fang Huang, Bao-zheng Gu, Jun-wei Tang, Fan Shen, Jia-feng Li, Yi-long Li, Hai-yan Lin, Juan Li, Shu-xian Cai, Kun-bo Wang, Jian-an Huang & Zhong-hua Liu

  2. Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory for Germplasm Innovation and Utilization of Crop, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha, 410128, China

    Ming-zhi Zhu

  3. College of Life Sciences, Huaibei Normal University, Huaibei, 235000, China

    Xin Zeng

  4. State Key Laboratory for Quality Research of Chinese Medicines, Macau University of Science and Technology, Avenida Wai Long, Taipa, Macao, 999078, China

    Jian-lin Wu

Authors
  1. Ming-zhi Zhu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Dan-min Lu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Jian Ouyang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Fang Zhou
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Pei-fang Huang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Bao-zheng Gu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Jun-wei Tang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Fan Shen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Jia-feng Li
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Yi-long Li
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. Hai-yan Lin
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. Juan Li
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  13. Xin Zeng
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  14. Jian-lin Wu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  15. Shu-xian Cai
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  16. Kun-bo Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  17. Jian-an Huang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  18. Zhong-hua Liu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

All authors have made substantial contributions to the conception and design of the study. MZ, DL, and FZ conducted the search and data extraction. JO, PH, BG, JT, FS, JL, XZ, YL, HL, SC, JH, JL, KW, and JW collected the data. MZ and ZL analyzed the data and wrote the manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Xin Zeng or Zhong-hua Liu.

Ethics declarations

Conflicts of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Zhu, Mz., Lu, Dm., Ouyang, J. et al. Tea consumption and colorectal cancer risk: a meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. Eur J Nutr 59, 3603–3615 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-020-02195-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00394-020-02195-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation