Scientists discovered that the caffeine in coffee that Americans are so addicted to was a genetic quirk much different to the caffeine found in chocolate or tea.
The caffeine that was mutated in coffee is why 54 percent of Americans drink coffee every day, according to a separate poll.
Researchers from around the world studied the genes in coffee, realizing it develops in different areas of the plant's genomes, biologist Victor Albert, who worked on the research, tells The Associated Press.
Coffee drinkers appreciate the added caffeine, as well as the coffee plant itself. Bugs and insects don't like the taste of caffeine, which means they don't eat the plant, leaving more coffee in the leaves, Albert explains to AP.
This caffeine mutation even helped the researchers who were studying the caffeine in coffee for the study.
"It wakes me up every morning," Albert tells AP. "I wouldn't be able to do all this fabulous work on coffee if it weren't for the coffee itself."
The research was published in the journal Science today, and will be presented at the 25th International Conference on Coffee Science in Colombia next week.
