You may be a coffee lover, drink it only when you need to wake yourself up or loathe it entirely. Regardless of your opinion on coffee, your genes could be to blame, says Dr. Karan Raj, a UK surgeon with National Health Service (NHS) and a TikToker with over 4 million followers.
In a recent video, he elaborated, saying, “There are at least six genes related to how your body processes caffeine,” and explained four coffee-related genes. The genes that influence how you experience caffeine rewards and cravings are based on the wiring of the BDNF and SLC6A4 genes.
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The CYP1A2 gene affects how your body metabolizes and breaks down caffeine. In case you have the CYP1A2*1A variant, you could be a “rapid” caffeine metabolizer, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association.
“Those who break caffeine down more quickly are more likely to drink more [coffee]because the effects wear off faster,” says Dr. Raj. “This may also explain why some people can drink coffee late in the day and still get a good night’s sleep.”
Lastly, the TAS2R38 gene affects how you taste bitterness. “If you have two copies of this mutated gene, you’ll be less sensitive to bitter taste, and you’re more likely to love and [really enjoy drinking]coffee,” says Dr. Raj.
Whether you love coffee or are indifferent to it, you are great as you are. We are all literally wired very differently!
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