So during one of my recent pharmacy school interviews, I was asked about the future of pharmacy. After I mentioned about how pharmacogenomics, or how genetics influences drug metabolism, will be used to help create drugs to benefit people of color, the professor who was interviewing me said sheepishly, “Uh, the only thing that I know about pharmacogenomics and people of color is the Asian flush.”
I ended up getting accepted.
The “Asian flush” is an otherwise layman’s term for the relatively well known observation that certain Asians (rates have been quoted as being 30% of Chinese, Japanese and Koreans to over 50% of East Asians) are more likely to not tolerate alcohol than others. The reason is that many Asians lack a particular enzyme, ALDH2, thus preventing the metabolism of alcohol (which is a poison in its normal form) into forms that the body can handle. Some people who lack this gene (such as a certain blogger on 8Asians who shall remain nameless) get drunk after only half a drink.
As it turns out, Newsweek reported that people who lack this enzyme are also more likely to get cancers that are directly related to alcohol consumption, such as esophageal cancer. In some studies, people who lack ALDH2 are 6-10 times more likely to develop esophageal cancer than those who do not.
In doing my own research on a presentation on Asian Americans and drug and alcohol use during my doctoral studies in medical sociology, it was assumed by non-Asians in many scholarly journal articles that the Asian flush was seen as a deterrent for Asians to drink alcohol. Anyone who’s ever been to an Asian American nightclub knows that’s definitely not the case.
I thought I was one of those people myself who couldn’t drink alcohol. However, after working out, getting in better shape and fixing my liver, I realized that I had actually inherited my dad’s liver. This means that while I can drink alcohol, I metabolize it so quickly that I don’t really get to enjoy the buzz, so there’s no point in me drinking. Dammit.
(Drunk Ernie Flickr photo credit: Ernie)
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16 Comments to ““Asian Flush” Means Higher Risk for Different Cancers”
Joanna wrote:
Thanks for this info! I definitely get the Asian flush, and I figured it was probably a sign that drinking was bad for me…. I’m not sure that I’m ready to quit drinking altogether, so I wish there were some info about how much is a safe level. I know that drinking is already more unsafe for women than for men…. This is freaking me out!
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 8:05 am | Permalink
Efren wrote:
Joanna: Well, I think the cancers really only happen after years and years of serious abuse, so unless you’ve already drunk enough to get to that stage, I wouldn’t worry about it. There are also other factors that I’m sure are put into play, so alcohol can’t necessarily be the sole cause of esophageal cancer.
Ernie: That pic is fucking classic. Love it!
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 8:21 am | Permalink
John wrote:
That is an awesome photo…
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 10:08 am | Permalink
Ernie wrote:
SWEET! HUMILIATION AND CANCER?! WHERE DO I SIGN UP?
(buries face in hands, cries)
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 10:57 am | Permalink
Efren wrote:
hahahaah! Not like I forced you to put that pic up there–that other pic was even funnier!
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 12:26 pm | Permalink
yoko wrote:
what’s the *other* pic look like?
Yup, I get the “Asian flush” too. I don’t drink as much as I used to, thankfully.
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 1:35 pm | Permalink
jennifer wrote:
i love that photo!
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 2:17 pm | Permalink
Moye wrote:
this actually makes me feel better for not drinking. and i think i have the same liver, too. i never get buzzed; i just get all hot and red and gross.
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 3:59 pm | Permalink
SinoSoul wrote:
does this NOT apply to Koreans… or am I imagining things?
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 4:02 pm | Permalink
Phil wrote:
Does this not apply to Koreans?
“The “Asian flush” is an otherwise layman’s term for the relatively well known observation that certain Asians (rates have been quoted as being 30% of Chinese, Japanese and Koreans to over 50% of East Asians”.
I think that answers your questions?
This alcohol flush, known as the Asian flush or Asian glow, most likely because it’s more commonly found amongst Asians…especially East Asians. However, it doesn’t mean that it applies to every single Asian so perhaps you just haven’t met any Koreans who had this?
I’ve personally seen the flush affect different people in various ways, including non-Asians, some people might just get red on their necks. Others might get the whole meal deal where they turn red like strawberries, headaches, they feel their heart beating. There are temporary solutions to this as well, but I would not recommend trying those long-term without consulting a doctor.
Interestingly enough, I have met some people who also after drinking for long their bodies became immune and they no longer had the Asian glow. Which reminded me of a recent news story that I saw about Americans who are allergic to peanuts. There was a experiment where they had their kids take a certain small amount of peanuts every single day, and after a while their body became immune and peanuts became part of their everyday diet. However, like the news said they suggest to consult a doctor before trying any of this.
There was also another interesting topic that I’ve read before about Asians. Supposedly there’s also a large percentage of Asians who are lactose intolerant? I’ve personally only met a few who actually are. As for myself, I can drink milk like it’s water.
Efren, nice picture btw. I might have to top yours with one of my own, lol.
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 6:24 pm | Permalink
Tracy wrote:
Oh that’s good, I have a label for it now. And thanks for clarifying, on first read I thought it meant lacking the enzyme made one more susceptible to cancer, rather than drinking w/out the enzyme. PHEW. Now my medical anxiety can continue on its merry way w/other issues.
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 7:11 pm | Permalink
Ernie wrote:
From what I understand: it’s not a deterrent for Asians to drink alcohol, sure. But there are lower rates of alcoholism with ethnically Chinese people, which hint that the people that DO drink and make themselves get red purely do it in a social setting (as opposed to, you know, “drinking the pain away.”)
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 7:14 pm | Permalink
Efren wrote:
Phil: that’s not me! It’s Ernie! I don’t get the Asian flush!
Posted on 25-Mar-09 at 7:37 pm | Permalink
Efren wrote:
Moye: (sigh) I guess I actually drink for taste and not to get buzzed. Joz can attest to that, too. I guess I should be glad that I’ve left those days of drinking and carousing behind.
Though I guess going back to school means I get to do that all over again. Uhh, yay?
Posted on 26-Mar-09 at 3:50 pm | Permalink
Moye wrote:
Efren, now you get to go back to school and come back with even more useful information for us and illegally refill my prescriptions!
Phil, I’m glad you mentioned that whole strawberry red, headachey and heart-beating-ness (I’m just making up these words left and right) because that’s exactly what happens to me. I always wondered if it was a sign of being allergic to alcohol, which my mom is.
And the immune thing is true; I drank consistently (okay that sounds really bad but I mean in a social way on the weekends) for a summer and the Asian flush took longer to take effect. Then I stopped and now I’m at an all-time low in being able to drink. BOO.
Posted on 26-Mar-09 at 4:19 pm | Permalink
8Asians.com » Yet Another Reason You Shouldn’t Drink Too Much: Video Evidence of Drunkeness wrote:
[...] covered the “Asian Flush” more than once and well, frankly, getting taped and humilated is a far worse consequence [...]
Posted on 20-Jun-09 at 3:11 pm | Permalink
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