Scientific reason for why we turn red (Page 2 of 3)

I too get the dreaded redness after only a wee bit of drink. It would be nice to be able to drink at least ONE without going red... a nice glass of wine with lunch isn't too much to ask is it?!

Anyway, I'm glad that Mel mentioned the reduced redness while dancing. It seems to work. I can't really say for sure cos I don't look at myself in a little mirror while on the dancefloor, but if I go to the loo after dancing and look in the mirror, the redness seems to have lessened (but it does come back so you gotta keep on dancin'!).

And I've found Pepcid very good. I take 40-60mg about 2 hours before and it usually works wonders! I've tried Zantac and it doesn't work for me.

I'm trying to train my body to accept and process alcohol - I am having little sips of wine throughout the evening. I'm hoping that this will kick-start the metabolic process and get it working efficiently! I don't drink much at all but am so sick of always refusing a drink. So hopefully, one day my body will be used to me drinking wine etc and can process at least 1 drink without my face and neck going red!

Okay, here goes!

I'm going out tomorrow night, and hopefully, I can grab some Pepcid AC before I go.
If I do have the chance, I'll post here on how well it works.

Excited and anxious,
Mel

Mel,
you should take the pepcid on an empty stomach instead of after appetizers

First of all, i want say thank you all for shedding some light on why i turn red each time i drink. I always thought it was like allergies or something.

So ALDH2 deficiency is what causes AF, because Acetaldehyde accumulates in your body and Acetaldehyde is not converted into Acetic acid quick enough (echeng et al). Now after some reading online, I came accross a chemical called N-acetylcysteine. This chemical is used to de-toxify your body from all kinds of things flu, bronchitis, mercury poisoning, good for smokers, etc. in addition to helping the conversion of Acetaldehyde into acetic acid.

So apparently this chemical (sold over the counter) is not only good for your body, but it should help avoid asian flush, no?

I have do NOT have a background in medicine, so all of you who understand this better, could you confirm whether i'm right oe wrong?

Thanx

hello all,
i just found this forum and its Abso-freak'in-lutly Fabulous!

it's nice to finally find out what's really going on(the allel info is really handy and hard to find). and it's nice to know that skipping the tipsy part and going straight to the "feeling sick as a dog" part is not just me.

i have a question though.

1.) ALDH2*2 differs from ALDH2*1 by one aminoacid(->so one nucletide is different due to pointmutation). and i presume that this effects the secundary and tertiary structure of the enzym(due to the primary structure change). is this structural change of the enzym the reason it doesnt work as effective? does the ALDH2 enzym variate in structure due to this mutation and are there simply 2 ALDH2 enzymes (apart from the cystolic and mitochondrial )? or is the interferrence between ALDH2*1 and ALDH2*2 the reason that the ALDH2 enzym works inproperly? and if this is the case what is the difference(looking strictly at the enzym itself) between the ineffective, less effective and effective ALDH2 enzym?

2.) if ALDH2*2 is indeed the dominant allel between the 2 than why is it that  ALDH2*2/ALDH2*2 is more rare?? i have yet to encounter someone that have a severa a reaction to alcohol as i do, allthough i know many that suffer from"the blush"  (admitted most asians i know are Halfs (half asian/half european) but even amongst my 100% friends none of them refrain from drinking due to any unwanted (read. ruining your night out) consequenses of drinking. ). even on the internet the symptomes i read about often include "blushing" and itching but only on rare accounts do i read about people that are so alcohol intolerant that they simply CAN'T drink because of nausea.

3.) i often read and know about people that "drink"there blush away. they get red all over after 2 beers but after the 4th the blush is gone and they can keep on drinking.
why is it that this is possible? even if they are hetrozygoot (ALDH2*2/ALDH2*1) they have a less effective ALDH2 enzym, shouldn't they still be suffering from the effect of having to much Acetaldehyde(ethanal)(the cause of nausea during a hangover) in the blood.?? how is it that these people can drink "like europeans" after conquering an initial blush? shouldnt they be getting sick anyway bacause their acetaldehyde dehyrogenase is too slow??

4.) why is it that some hetrozygoot (ALDH2*2/ALDH2*1) people have a stronger reaction to alcohol than other hetrozygoot (ALDH2*2/ALDH2*1) people??? what factors (besides sex, height, weight and general metabolism speedrate) are resposible for this difference?

i'm sorry that was more than one question and it's kinda specific.
it's just that i decided to write my high school research paper on the subject and being the internet idiot i am i find the information i find kind of lacking. i'm hoping someone here knows more about it and can answer my questions.

-X- Miesja

P.S> the Pepcide i'm reading about here, does it work on homozygoot ALDH2*2 people as wel? the experience from people here seem to be limited to people that only sufferd from "the blush" prior to taking pepcide.
is there anyone here who is homozygoot ALDH2*2 (meaning they get red for a second->get Sick->vomit->keep feeling sick) and has taken this pepcide? does it really work? because i would like to be able to drink,not in excess but a wine during dinner or a beer in a bar would be nice for a change.
Ad to tell the truth, i would like to know how it feels to just let go of my inhibitions.

P.P.S> sorry if things are formulated or spelled wrong, english is not my native language

Hi Lazy,

Does your flush go away a few hours after you've stopped drinking? I think most of us here only really suffer while drinking and a few hrs after (or perhaps til the next morning)... if you react worse than this then I don't think that we can help you.

Your diet and smoking certainly doesn't sound great, from a general health point-of-view but I don't see why that would bring on a flush. Have you tried the pepcid or claratine+zantac combo that we talk about on this forum? Either of these combos seem to work wonders for almost all of us.

Good luck!

so is it safe to take the Pepcid AC? i usually get red if I drink fast, but not as red if I take sips slowly. The flush usually goes away after 1-2 but also because I do have past history with acne I think that just makes my situation worst.

Anyways Pepcid AC, no harm no foul? because I have a bottle of tequila and malibu rum I got as a present. It would be a shame if it goes to waste.

Hey guys i just discovered this forum and i love it.... glad to know i'm not the only one that has this major problem.  I discovered i had this problem about 2 yrs ago and i have kept my drinking to almost nothing now, because of the redness.  I turn REALLY splotchy in the face and my body, and that has been keeping me from drinking socially... which is a shame.  I'm not exactly sure if i read it right... but people that DO turn red have a higher chance for cancer?  It seems like everyone takes pepcid but is that the best choice, and how many pills do you guys recommend?  Thanks guys....

I'm filipino and I drink occasionally.  Last night I had one mixed drink and a sip of champagne. Right before I went to bed I started getting itchu on the lower portion of my back and on my stomach.  When i woke up, the parts that itchy were beet red and were still itchy like crazy.  This is the third time it happened.  I don't drink beer and wine.  I usually just go for lighter drinks.  The first time this happened I drank 2 mix drinks and the second time I only drank 1 smirnoff. But after doing a little research..I am still confused.  I would very much like it if someone would just please clarify what is going on. Is it allergy?or what?... Thankz so much in advance.

is anyone here blood type b+?

mine do

Dear Scientists:

I have always had Asian flush, but last night I drank not that much (about 1.5 beers) and had a completely out of proportion reaction -- heart beat racing/ throbbing -- way over what would normally occur with alcohol.

could this be related to recent anemia, or is the mechanism responsible for elevated heart rate totally different?

Thank you!