Although alcohol is present all over the world, the style and amount of alcohol consumption differ. It is not without reason that the well-known stereotypes about the alcoholic achievements of the Slavs arose - in some parts of the world you simply drink more.
Globalization, however, causes different habits and styles to mix, and so does alcohol consumption. And here we can indicate a group of big "losers" who, despite their willingness, will not win the fight against their European colleagues. We are talking about Asians and their "weak heads". As it turns out, genetics turned out to be ruthless here.
What is the "rice mutation", how does it manifest itself, and why does it make it difficult for native Asian people to enjoy alcoholic beverages?
Asian flush will drink less
This phenomenon is known and even has its English name - "Asian flush". What is it about? It occurs when the whole skin of a person who consumes alcohol becomes red or even slightly swollen. Unfortunately, uninviting visual effects are often not the only side effects of alcohol consumption, sometimes in small amounts. The drinker also begins to experience increased heart rate, headache and nausea.
Why is this happening?
When a person consumes alcohol and his mind rejoices at the relaxing state of intoxication, the rest of the body carries out its statutory duties and takes up the difficult struggle to neutralize the toxic ethanol. How is this done? The frontline is "alcohol dehydrogenase" - an enzyme that converts ethanol to acetaldehyde.
The latter is even more toxic (and responsible for the phenomenon known as a hangover), but the body is able, with the help of another enzyme (acetaldehyde dehydrogenase), to break it down into safe acetic acid in the next steps. We sober up, our body gets rid of toxins and we live on. As it turns out, this process is slightly different for Asians than for the inhabitants of other continents.
"Rice mutation", that is, faster intoxication and a stronger hangover
Probably from 40% to 50% of Asians react to alcohol much more strongly than, for example, Slavs. This is because the form of the second mentioned enzyme, aldehyde dehydrogenase-2 (ALDH2), which is formed in their bodies, is inactive or much less active than in European colleagues. As a result, the drinker's body does not quickly and properly break down acetaldehyde into acetic acid. It gives the symptoms mentioned above quite quickly, i.e. redness all over the body and heart palpitations. Quite simply - the body gets poisoned more with acetaldehyde!
What else is the result of an inactive form of the ALDH2 enzyme? There may be a much faster "intoxication" and a stronger hangover. So, can't an Asian drink the same amount as a Pole or a Russian? Theoretically, it can, but it carries the risk of faster intoxication and a much more unpleasant "sickness" of the event.
Interestingly, difficulty in consuming alcohol is not the only result of the inactive form of ALDH2. Research has shown that its presence increases the risk of cancer and reduces the effectiveness of nitroglycerin, which is used, for example, in the treatment of coronary heart disease.
What for and why?
Although the "Asian flush" phenomenon has been known for a long time, answers to the most pressing questions about the cause and meaning of its occurrence have been long sought. A team of scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences led by Bing Su was supposed to find the likely explanation for the phenomenon. They found that a small mutation (polymorphism) in the gene encoding the aldehyde dehydrogenase spread between groups of people in a chronological manner consistent with the spread of rice cultivation skills. And as you know - you can also make alcoholic beverages from pink.
According to the scientists, the mutation was to prevent excessive alcohol consumption by people growing the most famous Asian plant. Especially that the reaction of Asians to alcohol consumption can be compared to alcoholics who received esperal sewn in as part of their treatment. Esperal's task is to provide the body with unpleasant reactions to alcohol and thus force the withdrawal of alcohol. The "rice mutation" works in the same way and it seems it works, because among the representatives of the yellow race the percentage of people addicted to alcohol is relatively small compared to other inhabitants of the globe. But are Asians themselves happy with their genetics?
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