Research has revealed that genes influence people's love of coffee

study reveals that genes influence people's love of coffee.
, a study published by Australian researchers suggests that people's perception of bitter substances is linked to having a specific set of genes that affect their preference for coffee, tea or alcohol. The paper was published in Scientific Reports.
Ju-Sheng Ong, Liang-Dar Hwang and colleagues at the Queensland Institute of Medicine assessed the effects of bitter taste perception on coffee, tea and alcohol intake by analyzing genetic variants associated with the perception of the three bitter substances, propylene thiopion (PROP), quinine and caffeine, using samples from more than 400,000 participants in the UK Biosaggle Library.
researchers found that higher sensitivity to caffeine bitterness (determined by specific genes) was associated with higher coffee intake, while higher sensitivity to PROP and quinine taste was associated with less coffee intake. People who are more sensitive to caffeine bitterness are more likely to become heavy coffee drinkers.
, the higher the sensitivity to PROP and quinine, the more tea was consumed, and the higher the sensitivity to caffeine, the less tea was consumed. For alcohol, a stronger perception of PROP leads to a decrease in alcohol intake, while a stronger perception of the other two compounds does not have a significant effect.
the results suggest that differences in bitter taste perception caused by genetic differences may explain why some people prefer coffee to tea. (Source: Lu Yi, China Science Daily)