Health Basics: How do food preservatives cause cancer? 697Sunday, July 13, 2014 by: S. D. Wells Tags: sodium benzoate, food preservatives, cancer (NaturalNews) The term food preservativessounds quite positive, and if you don't look any deeper than the surface, it's a good thing. It means the food that's packaged in boxes, bags, jars and cans has a longer shelf life, before mold..