Drinking Tea Could Permanently Change Women's Genes For The Better, A Study Says

If you take a cuppa in the morning and you shun coffee as the traditional wakeup drink — and you're a woman — you're in luck: Drinking tea might actually change the genes in your body, for the better.

A study recently published in the Human Molecular Genetics journal researched the effects of drinking tea and coffee on the DNA methylation, a mechanism in genetics that can flip certain genes to the "off position." In this case, female tea drinkers were found to have 28 regions known for triggering estrogen production and cancerous tumors that were differentially methylated. In layman's terms: For women, drinking tea frequently may help suppress tumor growth and decrease bodily inflammation just by triggering a genetic "off switch." Coffee was not found to have the same effect, and tea did not have the same effect on male tea drinkers.

"It has long been established that our food choices and compounds in different foods can have an impact on modifying disease risk," women's health expert Jennifer Wilder told Yahoo.

However, the researchers add that "further research is needed to understand how epigenetic changes found in this study affect our health."

Looking to improve your health? Here are 9 Teas to Replace Your Morning Coffee.