Can't start the day without a good coffee? And then another at the 10 a.m. break? And after lunch? In short, like many people, are you a coffee addict? Well, a recent study by Scottish researchers managed to explain this addiction:it is linked to our DNA.
To come to the conclusion that our genes determine our propensity to be addicted to caffeine, scientists studied the DNA of more than 1,100 people, living in northern and southern Italy. At the same time, each participant had to indicate their daily coffee consumption. This made it possible to see that, in “small” coffee drinkers (one cup less than the others on average), the PDSS2 gene had undergone a variation. This variation in the PDSS2 gene and its impact on coffee consumption was then verified via a second study, this time involving more than 1,700 people living in the Netherlands (although there was a less clear difference in the number of cups drunk between small and heavy drinkers).
But what is the role of the PDSS2 gene? It inhibits the body's ability to break down caffeine. Clearly, the caffeine that is broken down stays in the body longer, so you need to drink it less regularly to feel its effects. As for the difference noted between the Italians and the Dutch, it is explained by the fact that the Italians are fond of espresso (to drink in a small cup), while the Dutch tend to drink coffee in large cups , which automatically gives them a higher dose of caffeine and explains why they take longer to feel the need for it again.
The scientists who conducted this study now want to verify it on a larger scale in order to further justify the biological link between our genes and our coffee consumption. In any case, we therefore understand why some feel the need to drink coffee every hour while one cup a day is more than enough for others...
