I thought about posting this when i mikkim first pointed it out to me 2 wks ago, but by the time i got around to it, i figured it was old news. Not so, i have just learned from wanyas and bob. So here it is.

Leading independent experts have issued this strong warning after investigating latest scientific evidence linking alcohol-containing mouthwashes to the deadly disease.

Their review, published in the Dental Journal of Australia, concludes there is now ``sufficient evidence'' that "alcohol-containing mouthwashes contribute to the increased risk of development of oral cancer''.

The ethanol in mouthwash is thought to allow cancer-causing substances to permeate the lining of the mouth more easily and cause harm.

Acetaldehyde, a toxic by-product of alcohol that may accumulate in the oral cavity when swished around the mouth, is also believed to be carcinogenic.

Listerine, the nation's biggest-selling mouthwash and a brand endorsed by the Australian Dental Association (ADA), contains as much as 26 per cent alcohol.

...
The review reported evidence from an international study of 3210 people which found daily mouthwash use was a "significant risk factor'' for head and neck cancer, irrespective of whether users also drank alcohol or smoked.

But the effects of mouthwash were worst in smokers, who had a nine-fold increased risk of cancers of the oral cavity, pharynx and larynx.

Those who also drank alcohol had more than five times the risk - and even those who neither drank nor smoked still ran a four- to five-fold risk of contracting cancer.

A Brazilian study has also found regular mouthwash use is associated with oral cancer regardless of alcohol or tobacco consumption.

"Mouthwash products are in contact with the oral mucosa as much as alcoholic beverages, and may cause chemical aggression of the cells,'' researchers from the University of Sao Paulo said.

They said the role of ethanol in causing DNA damage needed to be explored further.

A review in the Journal of Occupational Medicine and Toxicology last year said it would be "prudent, precautionary public-health policy to generally refrain from using ethanol in (mouthwash) products'' because of "doubts about the safety of alcohol-containing oral products''.

Listerine's gross, so it's no great loss to me. I loves me that Tom's of Maine peppermint mouthwash.

What doesn't give you cancer now a days?

ooh! i hope the answer's "donuts". is it donuts? huh? huh?

Actually the answer is "nothing", but that means you might as well eat the donuts. Because, you know... you'll get cancer anyway. Or from not eating them.

Actually a friend of mine said that there was also a study that claimed that poor dental hygiene lead to cancers of the mouth, throat and stomach. Ouch.