Drinking just a small glass of soda and fruit juice or 100 ml of any sugary drink per day is linked to an 18% increase in overall cancer risk and a 22% increase in risk for breast cancer, a study suggests.

Researchers studied the data of more than 101,257 healthy French adults of 79% women and 21% men, and they noticed that sugar seemed to be the main driver of the link; however, additives, such as 4-methylimidazole, might be behind the cancer formation too.

"What we observed was that the main driver of the association seems to be really the sugar contained in these sugary drinks," lead author of the study, Mathilde Touvier, said, explaining that reducing sweetened beverages consumption could be beneficial for our health.

"High sugary drinks consumption is a risk factor for obesity and weight gain. Obesity is in itself a risk factor for cancer,” Touvier stated.

Touvier advised that people eat healthy and stay away from sugary drinks.