Photograph by Lisa Shin
Often find yourself craving yet another cup of coffee? You might have your genes to blame. A new study reveals a startling truth about you and your cuppa…
I’ll have another cup, please…
Coffee is one of the most widely drunk beverages, second only to water and tea. Given that it contains many different physiologically active compounds, such as caffeine, many studies have investigated its impact on health, finding associations with common disorders.
For example, coffee consumption has been linked to protective effects (nice!) on various common health problems such as cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, type-2 diabetes, some types of cancer and hearing functions, while it may predispose to others to certain issues, such as sleep disturbances.
Read More: 6 Legit Beauty Benefits Of Caffeine
What the study found
A recent study published in Nature.com found that people with a variation to the gene PDSS2 may be destined to drink less coffee as their bodies react to caffeine more quickly.
About a cup less coffee is actually needed to produce the same effect as was found by testing the DNA and surveying the coffee drinking habits of over 1 200 Italians. Lucky them!
The basics of the study were reproduced in over 1 700 Dutch, although those with the gene variation needed even a smaller amount of coffee to get the same caffeine high as the Italians.
Researchers believe the difference may be ascribed to the Italians drinking small espressos while the Dutch drink larger mugs of coffee.
So you can blame that extra cup or two on your genes! Kinda… Wink.
Bored with the same old cup? Try these 4 ways to pimp your coffee!
