Coffee is a drink that is consumed all over the world. It has psychoactive properties that are mainly due to the presence of caffeine. Approximately 60-85% of adults in Europe and in the United States consume between 0.6 and 5.5 cups of coffee daily.
It is known that, due to its bioactive components, a moderate intake of coffee (two or three cups a day) improves cognitive function and reduces the risk of developing various diseases (liver, neurodegenerative diseases, cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes and certain types of cancer). However, excessive coffee intake (4 cups or more) has been associated with an increased risk of abuse or misuse of other substances, an abnormal lipid profile, pregnancy loss (miscarriage), gastrointestinal diseases, and cardiovascular deterioration.
Relationship between genetics and coffee consumption
In a study published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology, an attempt was made to determine whether coffee intake could be genetically conditioned. The work included 130,156 people (of European ancestry) who underwent a genetic study and whose health conditions and lifestyle habits were also studied. Genetic variants were identified in a total of 165 genes that are potentially involved in increased coffee intake. Furthermore, they found that the presence of these variants was also associated with the use/abuse of other substances (cigarettes, cannabis or alcohol) and with a higher body mass index (obesity), but they did not find an association (either positive or negative) with the general health of the people studied.
The results indicate that the taste for daily coffee intake has a hereditary component. However, to prove the association of coffee with health conditions or diseases, various factors must be studied, such as the influence of different forms of cultivation and origin of coffee, methods of treatment, processing and preparation of coffee, or the contribution of different cultural habits (if it is taken with or without sugar, if it is accompanied by something to eat, etc.).
