A new study by a US academic has revealed that the reason we prefer to sip a latte or sweet soft drinks isn’t based on our taste genes (as scientists previously thought), but instead on the drinks’ ‘psychoactive properties’.
Study author, Marilyn Cornelis, took on the research to find out whether genetics could explain our beverage preferences – hoping to be able to use the data to intervene in people’s sugar and alcohol-heavy diets.
But it turns out the heart just wants what it wants.
“People like the way coffee and alcohol make them feel. That’s why they drink it. It’s not the taste”, she said.
The study also highlighted important “behaviour-reward” components around how we choose the drinks we consume. For example, many study participants said they chose coffee or soft drinks in the morning because they liked the ‘euphoric feeling’ that the caffeine provided, or preferred alcohol because of its ‘calming’ effect.
Cornelis is determined to use the findings for good, saying the more we know, the easier it will be to nudge people towards healthier drink choices.
Sounds like a noble cause – just don’t take away my coffee.
