The Natural Products Association (NPA) trade organization stated that contrary to sensationalized headlines and speculative conclusions, the study does not demonstrate that dietary taurine intake causes leukemia or poses a safety risk to consumers.
“While the media and the authors are unabashedly and irresponsibly positioning the study that dietary intake of taurine leads to leukemia, nothing could be further from the truth,” said Daniel Fabricant, PhD, president and CEO at NPA.
Conducted by researchers from University of Rochester Medical Center and published in the journal Nature on May 14, the study was quickly picked up by local and national news sources.
Although not aligned with the study findings, headlines included “Common Energy Drink Ingredient Linked to Blood Cancer” and “Could Your Energy Drink Be Feeding Cancer? What Scientists Just Discovered.”
Linking taurine to leukemia
Taurine, which was first isolated by German scientists in 1827 from ox bile, is a semi-essential amino acid found in meat, fish, eggs and seaweed. It is naturally occurring in the human body and supports digestive, cardiovascular, skeletal, eye, muscular and nervous system functions.
More recently, studies have explored its potential as healthy aging compound due to its ability to scavenge the toxic effects of reactive oxygen species that damage cells over time. NPA also highlighted taurine’s critical role in bone health and the function of bone marrow stem cells.
In the University of Rochester study, the investigators from the Wilmot Cancer Institute reported that they were able to block the growth of leukemia in mouse models and in human leukemia cell samples by using genetic tools to prevent taurine from entering cancer cells.
“We are very excited about these studies because they demonstrate that targeting uptake by myeloid leukemia cells may be a possible new avenue for treatment of these aggressive diseases,” Jeevisha Bajaj, PhD, lead author on the study, shared in University of Rochester Medical Center press release titled “A Downside of Taurine: It Drives Leukemia Growth.”
Commenting on the study, Dr. Mark Miller, PhD, MBA, FACN, CNS, president of Kaiviti Consulting, said the findings suggest that taurine may exacerbate myeloid leukemia, especially as it is often used during chemotherapy, but that some may misinterpret that taurine promotes cancer in a healthy population.
“What the study shows is that cancer cells (done in vitro and in mouse models) are energy hogs, and through glycolytic pathways, taurine (and its transporter systems) can help supply the energy cancer cells need,” he explained. “In other words, the study shows that it helps pre-established cancer cells propagate.”
He added that, based on this research, which uses doses hundreds of times in excess than those found in dietary supplements, taurine supplementation should not be a cause for any concern.
The problem with extrapolating conclusions
While the study focuses on aspects of energy availability that support cancer cell replication and growth, the researchers included one sentence cautioning against taurine supplementation—the sentence picked up by the media.
“Since taurine is a common ingredient in energy drinks and is often provided as a supplement to mitigate the side effects of chemotherapy, our work suggests that it may be of interest to carefully consider the benefits of supplemental taurine in leukemia patients,” they wrote.
Jeff Ventura, vice president of communications at the Council for Responsible Nutrition, said the problem is that media coverage of the study has been sensationalized by making it sound like taurine is dangerous to the general public.
“In reality, this research looked at a very specific and rare type of leukemia in mice, using genetic tools and lab models that don’t reflect how taurine is used in everyday life,” he noted.
“The study doesn’t say anything about the safety of taurine for healthy people or suggest that normal dietary or supplement use is harmful. You have to consider that taurine has a long track record of benefits for heart, brain and overall health. Suggesting that taurine is broadly dangerous based on this study is a big headline-grabbing leap.”
NPA emphasized that taurine has well-established safety profiles, as recognized by health authorities around the world.
“These authorities have consistently found no adverse effects at daily intake levels ranging from 1,500 to 3,000 mg, and in some cases, even higher amounts have been deemed safe,” the association shared in a press release, noting that this latest study “does absolutely nothing” to change this well-document safety record.
“The research is looking at isolated cell signaling—applying that broadly to all supplemental or energy drink intake is plain irresponsible and appears to be a scare tactic to generate funding and media attention,” Dr. Fabricant added.
“If the study didn’t mention supplements, it’s unlikely anyone outside of a research lab would have even noticed it. This is not a human safety study. It is a laboratory study and should be treated as such.”
