Do you prefer coffee or tea? Science report: genes have determined taste preferences

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Do you prefer coffee or tea? The study points out that preferences for these two drinks depend on genes, and genetic physique affects people's perception of specific bitterness, so some people prefer tea and others prefer coffee.

Guardian reported on the 15th that Cornelis, a scholar at Northwestern University University in Illinois, said: "this study improves our understanding of the factors that determine beverage preferences, especially taste preferences, and why, even if all other factors remain the same, we can still find differences in beverage preferences and consumption."

The sensitivity of caffeine and quinic acid depends on genes.

The scientists compared the following two data for the beverage taste preference study published in the journal Scientific Reports.

The first is twins of European origin, where specific genetic variations are associated with perceptual intensity of different tastes: one specific variant is associated with caffeine with slightly higher levels of bitterness, another with higher levels of quinic acid, and a gene that affects the sensitivity of propylthiouracil (PROP).

Another study collected data from tens of thousands of participants aged 37 to 73 between 2006 and 2010, collected their genetic data and health status, and counted how many different drinks participants drank each day.

Human genes are fixed at the time of conception, but the genetic variation is thought to be random, and many environmental factors can affect people's habit of drinking hot drinks.

Genetic perception of caffeine affects taste preference

The team found that people who were genetically more sensitive to the bitterness of caffeine drank more coffee, but were more sensitive to quinine and PROP bitterness and drank less coffee.

"given that humans tend to stay away from bitterness, we interpret these findings as a possible learning behavior: a high level of awareness of caffeine connects the psychologically stimulating nature of caffeine and seeks more coffee," Cornelis said. "

Cornelis said the tea findings are difficult to explain, but may partly explain why heavy coffee drinkers are less likely to choose tea.

"Taste genes affect how much coffee, tea or alcohol we drink, and our preference for tea can be seen as the result of giving up drinking coffee, because genes may make coffee too taste-stimulating," she said. "

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