Do Preservatives Cause Cancer?
A breakdown of a recent study investigating common food preservatives and risk of cancer.
On January 7, 2026, a study published in the British Medical Journal made headlines for examining the relationship between commonly used food preservatives and cancer risk, with media summaries along the lines of “Preservatives Linked to Cancer” circulating quickly online.
In today’s post, I’ll break down what the study actually found, how to interpret the results, and what, if anything, these findings mean for everyday food choices.
Summary of study design and methods:
This study used data from more than 100,000 adults enrolled in the French NutriNet-Santé cohort, who were followed for an average of 6.7 years. Researchers estimated preservative intake using repeated 24-hour dietary recalls, in which participants recorded everything they ate and drank on three separate days.
To identify specific additives, participants were asked to report the brand names of packaged foods. These were cross-referenced with three food composition databases, allowing researchers to estimate whether a food contained specific preservatives and, when available, approximate amounts based on typical industry use levels.
The analysis included preservatives with non-antioxidant and antioxidant functions, as well as some compounds with additional technological roles (such as emulsifiers). Preservatives were grouped as follows: sorbates, sulphites, nitrites, nitrates, acetates, propionates, ascorbates, tocopherols, erythorbates, lecithins, citrates, phosphoric acid, and rosemary extract.
Cancer incidence was identified through follow-up health questionnaires completed during the study period.
Key findings:
