New concerning evidence has been discovered that links the consumption of energy drinks to an increased risk of developing cancer. Another study published in the Nature Journal claims that taurine, an important component in energy drinks, does more than just keep people awake.
In May, a University of Rochester study presented their findings on the relationship between taurine and aggressive leukemia.
The rest of the group—including folks from the University of Rochester—discovered that taurine is not just excreted after consumption. Certain bone, brain, heart, and muscle cells have the ability to produce it, and in combination with leukemia, taurine appears to facilitate the rampant proliferation of malignant cells.
In order to understand the reason behind this, it is important to know how blood cancers like leukemia develop. As cited by the National Cancer Institute, leukemia begins with a couple of damaged stem cells located in the bone marrow, which is the site of blood production within the body. Owing to the overproduction of these harmful stem cells, the body can no longer sustain the requisite red and white blood cells. Furthermore, the current research illustrates that cells affected by leukemia may be supported by the taurine produced in your body.
The researchers looking into this discovered that during the more advanced stages of leukemia, some of the human bone marrow cells start to synthesize taurine in greater quantities, which the cancer cells absorb through a specific channel known as TauT. An increase in taurine concentration may aid these cancer cells in energy production, which possibly increases their growth rate.
However, when the scientists restricted taurine synthesis in the bone and confined it to the cell's cytoplasm, the advancement of leukemia was inhibited. The result showed an increase in the lifespan of infected mice. Tumor spread was prolonged, indicating that there is a potential to develop a new strategy to battle this disease.
"It's been a delight to us that these tests were able to view targeting the manner in which myeloid leukemia cells uptake material might be an approach to consider for curing such complex diseases," said Dr. Bajaj.
It is important to highlight this study does not formulate nor insinuate any causation between energy drinks or energy supplements and the formation of cancer. Nonetheless, it did show that the administration of taurine, which is common in energy drinks, significantly accelerated leukemia progression in the mice.
In some early-stage scientific trials, it eases some adverse effects of chemotherapy, like nausea. There are also other studies suggesting that taurine may have some anti-cancer activity against stomach cancers.
Nevertheless, they emphasized, "Since taurine is found in most energy drinks and is frequently administered as a supplement during chemotherapy, our study suggests that it's prudent to be cautious about the possible negative effects of high taurine on leukemia patients."