Mouthwashes can cause oral cancer and should be removed from supermarket shelves, an expert said recently.

    There is 'sufficient evidence' that those containing alcohol contribute to increased risk of the disease, according to a review of the latest studies by an Australian scientist.

    Professor Michael McCullough, whose findings are published in the Dental Journal of Australia, said some mouthwashes were more dangerous than wine or beer because they contained higher concentrations of alcohol - as high as 26 per cent.

    He said they should only be available with a prescription and for short-term use.

    'We see people with oral cancer who have no other risk factors than the use of alcohol-containing mouthwash, so what we've done in this study is review all the evidence that's out there,' he said.

    Smoking and alcohol consumption are well-established risk factors in oral cancer which is diagnosed in 5,000 people in the UK each year, and causes 1,600 deaths.

    Professor McCullough, from Melbourne University, said the alcohol in mouthwash allows cancer-causing substances such as nicotine to penetrate the lining of the mouth more easily.

    And it can mean a toxic breakdown product of alcohol called acetaldehyde - another carcinogen - can accumulate in the oral cavity when swished around the mouth.

    The review reported evidence from an international study of 3,210 people which found daily mouthwash use was a 'significant risk factor' for head and neck cancer.

     一位專家近日稱，漱口水可能會導(dǎo)致口腔癌，并呼吁超市停售這類產(chǎn)品。

    澳大利亞一名科學(xué)家對近期的一些相關(guān)研究進(jìn)行調(diào)研后做出評論：目前有“足夠的證據(jù)”可證明含有酒精的漱口水會增加患口腔癌的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)。

    麥克爾•邁克洛夫教授稱，一些漱口水比葡萄酒或啤酒還要危險(xiǎn)，因?yàn)樗鼈兯�含的酒精濃度較高，達(dá)到26%。該研究結(jié)果在《澳大利亞口腔健康》期刊上發(fā)表。

    邁克洛夫教授指出，漱口水應(yīng)需處方才能購買，而且建議只能短期使用。

    他說：“我們發(fā)現(xiàn)口腔癌患者正是使用了含有酒精的漱口水，而并未涉及其它風(fēng)險(xiǎn)因素，所以在這項(xiàng)研究中，我們深入分析了現(xiàn)有的全部病例。”

    吸煙和飲酒已被認(rèn)定為口腔癌的主要發(fā)病因素，每年英國有五千人患口腔癌，死亡病例達(dá)1600人。

    來自墨爾本大學(xué)的邁克洛夫教授稱，漱口水中的酒精會導(dǎo)致煙堿等致癌物更易滲入口腔內(nèi)壁。

    而且酒精的代謝產(chǎn)物乙醛也容易通過漱口過程在口腔中堆積，這種物質(zhì)也會致癌。

    該評論報(bào)告了一項(xiàng)有3210人參加的全球性研究提供的證據(jù)。這項(xiàng)研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，每天用漱口水是導(dǎo)致患頭頸癌的一個(gè)“很重要的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)因素”。