Does a Family History of Alcohol Dependence Predict Caffeine Dependence?

New research suggests a genetic link between susceptibility to alcohol and caffeine dependence. Researchers examined 44 newly pregnant women attempting to refrain from caffeine. Diagnostic interviews were conducted with each woman, focusing on caffeine dependence, alcohol dependence, psychiatric disorders, and family history of substance dependence. Each woman was tested three times during pregnancy to determine success at refraining from caffeine. Subjects with both caffeine dependence and a family history of alcoholism ingested 3–5 times as much caffeine during pregnancy than did subjects with a history of just caffeine dependence. The study appeared in the American Journal of Psychiatry. http://ajp.psychiatryonline.org/cgi/content/abstract/162/12/2344