There are hidden dangers lurking in almost every aisle of the grocery store. Many of the foods we eat on a regular basis contain additives, ingredients or packaging that may make them dangerous to consume. Cancer-causing agents are some of the most common food dangers, with these six food items coming up as some of the more surprising foods you consume on a regular basis that have been linked to causing a wide variety of cancers, as well as other illnesses:

Alcohol

With all the research released about the benefits of drinking red wine, you may be surprised to learn that, next to tobacco use, alcohol is the second-leading cause of cancer in the United States, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). According to an American study that followed diet and lifestyle choices of more than 200,000 women over a period of 14 years, quoted on NaturalOn.com, postmenopausal women who drank at least one alcoholic beverage a day had almost a 30 percent increase in rates of breast cancer, as compared with women who are nondrinkers.

While social drinking can have some health benefits, including protecting against heart disease, chronic or excessive drinking has been linked to heart failure, stroke, liver disease and other health conditions. The National Cancer Institutes at the National Institutes of Health found that alcohol consumption is a major risk factor for several types of cancer, including the mouth, throat, larynx, esophageal cancer, breast cancers, liver and colorectal cancers.

Microwave Popcorn

Microwave popcorn has been linked to several health conditions, and in the past decade gained national media attention when the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) linked several cases of bronchiolitis obliterans (BO) in workers at a popcorn plant. This serious, permanent condition, caused by the inhalation of diacetyl, the chemical that’s used to give popcorn a buttery taste, causes the air sacs in the lungs to be permanently and irreversibly scarred.