Daily cola 'raises cancer risk' due to caramel coloring

 The chemical process during the manufacture of the caramel coloring used in soft drinks such as cola produces a carcinogen that could be raising the risk of cancer to above the accepted threshold of one extra case in every 100,000 people consuming the drinks, suggests an analysis.

Matching laboratory tests conducted by Consumer Reports on 11 different soft drinks, first reported last year, with an analysis of average consumption by Americans, the researchers found that one can a day could be enough to expose them to potentially cancer-causing levels of the chemical known as 4-MEI (short for 4-methylimidazole).

The potential carcinogen is formed during the manufacture of the familiar caramel color that is added to many widely-consumed beverages.

A law in California requires that drinks must carry warning labels if they contain enough 4-MEI to pose an excesscancer risk of more than 1 case in every 100,000 exposed people (an exposure of 29 mcg of 4-MEI every day).

Testing on 110 samples of soda brands carried out by the Consumer Reports researchers, led by a team at the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future in Baltimore, MD, found that drinks contained levels ranging from 9.5 mcg per liter (mcg/L) to 963 mcg/L.

Drinking A cola a day could cause you serious problems in the future.