NTU students take on the perilous misconceptions of the common Asian Flush

For their final year project, a group of students from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) chose to take on an issue that most of us Asians are way too familiar with — the alcohol flush reaction. Or, in terms that we’re familiar with, the Asian Flush (alternatively, the Asian Glow).

You already know what it is. A condition experienced by a majority of those of East Asian descent, it happens when blotches of red turn up on one’s face, neck, and other parts of the body after consuming alcoholic beverages. Through a campaign entitled “RED AF”, a team of four NTU undergrads aims to raise awareness and educate young adults on the Asian Flush and its deeper health implications.

Considering that many often underestimate the severity of health consequences related to the syndrome (it’s not an indication of good “qi”, as your older relatives might say), the campaign is also meant to promote a healthier and safer drinking culture in Singapore — less binge-drinking, more good ol’ hydration.

Speaking to Coconuts Singapore, NTU student Lisbeth Lee from the RED AF campaign mentioned that they thought about tackling the issue after being afflicted by the Asian Glow themselves.

“We’d always get a couple of comments here and there regarding the redness on our faces, but when we went on exchange programs (to France and Sweden), the Asian Flush was especially pronounced among our non-flushing Ang Moh friends… resulting in quite a bit of embarrassment for us,” said Lee.

After her group came across an article online about the deeper implications of the syndrome, they realized that the issue isn’t talked about much in mainstream media.

“Most of us actually had the misconception that Asian Flush was about good blood circulation or drunkenness, so we were especially vested in correcting this perspective for our friends as well,” she added. A survey conducted by them revealed that 56.7 percent of the over 200 NTU student respondents were fellow Asian flushers as well.

Even though 64.4 percent of the respondents intended to keep to the Health Promotion Board’s drinking guidelines (a maximum of one drink for women a day and two drinks for men a day), only 26.3 percent actually succeeded in doing so. A worrying statistic, as an Asian flusher’s threshold for binge-drinking is even lower than a non-flusher.

“Patients with the Asian Flush condition subject themselves to a higher risk of gastrointestinal cancers should they continue to consume alcohol,” noted Dr. Ong Lizhen, Associate Consultant in the Department of Laboratory Medicine at National University Hospital.

“For example, an Asian Flusher who consumes two beers a day is 10 times more likely to develop esophageal cancer, as compared to a non-Asian Flusher who drinks the same amount.”

A bummer for party-loving flushers then, but it’s always good to be reminded that drinking should always be done in moderation. Or in the immortal words of Ice Cube, “chickity check yo self before you wreck yo self”.



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