Recent medical studies conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts lends support to the theory that our genes may be to blame for some of the most outrageous coffee addictions.

Scientists can confirm identifying six new and exciting gene variations linked directly to the correlation between coffee and caffeine consumption. In various studies, 120,000 regular coffee drinkers and their daily caffeine intake levels were analyzed and monitored. “Those participants had described how much coffee they drink a day and allowed their DNA to be scanned. The new work looked for minute differences in their DNA that were associated with drinking more or less coffee.”

Bridget Davis, a junior at the University of Oregon, is a self-proclaimed coffee addict, “I drink at least one cup of coffee a day. I can not function in the morning whatsoever without caffeine.”

Individuals whose bodies absorb caffeine quickly are more likely to drink more coffee. Marilyn Cornelis, the lead research associate in the Department of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health states, “They lose the effect of coffee quickly, which drives them to have more.”

Four of the six new variants implicate genes that are involved with caffeine, either in how the body breaks it down or in its stimulating effects, the researchers said in a paper published in “Molecular Psychiatry.”

“The two other newly implicated genes were a surprise because there’s no clear biological link to coffee or caffeine,” Cornelis said. They are instead involved with cholesterol levels and blood sugar.

Sophomore Helen Parkey believes coffee addiction is real as she deals with it first hand every day. “With any addiction you get withdrawals, the headache is a sign of withdrawal for me,” she said.

Parkey also mentioned that she religiously gets coffee every morning at 10 am. “If I do not have caffeine I will unquestionably get a headache because my system is so dependent on caffeine.”

University of Oregon Junior and EMU Outlets Barista Paige Whitaker has seen coffee addicts first hand.

“There are regulars who come in almost every day to get coffee throughout the day. A lot of people use coffee to help them study or get through a long day of classes,” she said.

Addictions to coffee can vary. Some people may be addicted because it makes them feel energized and awake in the morning, while others are addicted because it allows them to stay up late while studying.

Marian Neuhouser, a nutrition researcher at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle and the study’s co-author, said “Identifying genes related to consumption may one day help doctors identify patients who need extra help in cutting down on coffee, if recommended.”

None of the identified genetic variants were related to how intensely a person tastes coffee, Cornelis said that surprised her.

She doesn’t drink coffee, she said, because she “can’t stand the stuff.”