There's A Fascinating Genetic Reason Why You Love Certain Foods (And Can't Tolerate Others)

It's long been a joke that white people love cheese, and science is beginning to show the stereotype is not inherently wrong. What's more, it has to do with genetics. Lactose intolerance is a major problem in many parts of the world, but it shows up far less often in white people. Only 14% of Caucasians have a problem with lactose, meaning that cheese is an easier thing to have on the menu in, say, Scandinavia than it is in Korea. Cheese has also been found to be genuinely addictive, so once you start eating it in your youth, the chemical compound casein makes it hard to stop.

The French are one particular Caucasian group most suited to eating cheese. Not only are relatively few French people lactose intolerant, but the country also has one of the lowest rates of heart disease. Even though cheese is high in fat and salt, the French still have a life expectancy of 82 years on average.

On the other hand, you'll find that cheese is not as commonly found in much Asian cuisine. Again, this comes down to a matter of genetics. People of Asian descent are much more likely to have lactose intolerance to the point where it's a major problem compared to most other races and ethnicities.

Specifically, at least 90% of people in China have an issue processing and digesting dairy. Given this fact, people there are less likely to even try to start eating cheese in their food, even from a young age. They don't get hooked by cheese's addictive qualities, so they never gain the rabid need for cheese that many Caucasians do. 

Russian vodka may be difficult for even heavy drinkers to stomach at times, but Russian natives seem to be able to deal with it just fine. Why is that? As it turns out, Russians are more resistant to the effects of vodka.

People from Russia have a different genetic makeup that people from even nearby parts of Europe, and their genes are better at codifying the ferments that oxidize alcohol. This means that they are simply more resistant to the effects of heavy drinking, so they don't act like blithering idiots after a drink or two. Of course, the Russian liver still takes a hit from long-term alcohol abuse. But in the short term, they're simply better at holding their liquor. 

In other words, don't go shot-for-shot with a Russian - unless you're Russian. 

In general, people who like spicy foods tend to be thrill seekers. That's because their bodies respond to the pain that comes with spice as if they're in danger from poison or attack. That also gives our body a spike of adrenaline, which is why adrenaline junkies tend to gravitate towards spicy cuisine. However, there's another factor that influences the love of spicy food, and it's based in geography.

In Latin cultures, spicy foods are often introduced to children when they're fairly young, even in the form of candy. This exposure to spice actually strengthens the nerve endings in the mouth through desensitization, making people more able to eat spicy stuff later in life. This may also be helped by genes that already exist, predisposing people in Latin cultures to be able to handle the heat.

In other words, these cultures pass their love of spicy on to their offspring through both flavor and genetics. 

Celiac disease is a serious health issue that involves an immune system reaction whenever a person consumes gluten (the proteins found in grains such as wheat and barley). The disease has become a problem in parts of India in recent years as people have begun eating more gluten.

As it turns out, the instance of this disease is much higher in parts of Northern India, with more than 1% of people having it there versus only about 0.1% in the south. The difference between the regions could be the cause of this disparity, as regional diets in India are vastly different. The cuisine in Southern India is rice-heavy, and because rice is gluten-free, there's less Celiac disease.

Unfortunately, Northern India, particularly Punjab, leans more heavily on wheat, which leads to a higher occurrence of immune system responses to gluten.

Native American peoples have long relied on maple sugar as a vital part of their cuisine. In fact, 12% of the Native American diet during the pre-Colonial period involved maple sugar, traditionally a huge staple of their food. Entering the 20th century, however, when most tribes were controversially shuffled to reservations, their diets shifted away from natural foods to a lot of canned meats and processed foods.

Today, a stunning 12% of Native Americans suffer from type 2 diabetes, which can develop at any point in life. High sugar consumption, combined with a very specific gene that makes a person up to 20% more likely to develop diabetes has been attributed to the high rate. This gene is also linked to obesity and other health problems, posing a higher health risk from sweets and fats.

There is a movement to return to a more organic diet and natural foods education, which will hopefully start to combat health problems.