Cheese Preference

Your result, the one DNA position behind it, and what the research says.

5/10 confidence.

About Cheese Preference

Cheese consumption was one of the dietary questions in a survey of hundreds of thousands of people, and about sixty positions in the genome came out weakly attached to the answers. This one sits near GNPDA2, which is best known for its link to body mass and appetite regulation. That is worth knowing, because it suggests any effect here may be about appetite in general rather than about cheese in particular.

Good to know: Cheese intake was surveyed by questionnaire, so this measures what people say rather than what they eat. The measured difference between genotypes is small next to habit and what is available. Liking for most foods is heavily learned, especially in childhood.

Fun fact: Cheese is one of the few foods whose consumption depends heavily on whether a population historically kept dairy animals, which is why it varies so much by region.

Discovery: Cheese consumption was surveyed genome-wide in UK Biobank.

The Variant

The single variant behind this trait

Gene: GNPDA2

Variant (rsID): rs10938397

Location: Chr 4:45,180,510

dbSNP rs10938397

The studies

Comprehensive genomic analysis of dietary habits in UK Biobank identifies hundreds of genetic associations (Cole JB et al., Nature communications, 2020)

Other lifestyle traits

Orange Liking: A change in the gene for the receptor of a gut hormone released after eating, linked in a large survey to liking for oranges.

Protein Preference: A change in the regulator of the enzyme that starts glucose breakdown, linked to the share of energy people take as protein.

Bitter Drinks Liking: A change inside a vesicle-trafficking gene, linked to a cluster of liking for the bitter adult drinks: coffee, beer and wine.

Back to All Traits

Content updated September 2026.

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