Asian flush

Apparently there are many Asians who have a genetic ability to ward off, as they call it in the article, "the demon rum." Many Asians get sick when drinking. You've seen it: the Asian flush. It happens to my Native American friend, too. Apparently Benedryl makes it go away, which means it really is an allergy to alcohol.

"Kidd's team was studying a variant of one of a set of related genes that code for alcohol dehydrogenases, enzymes that help in metabolism of alcohols, including ethanol. Variants of those enzymes have been known for many years to protect the individuals carrying them against alcoholism.

The particular gene studied, a variant of the ADH1B gene, is very common in some East Asian communities, as high as 90 percent in some areas. But he also noted that lower rates of alcoholism in many of the Asian communities may well be due to cultural as well as genetic causes."

Is that why I've only ever seen two Asians at AA?