Why Antihistamines Should Not Be Used to Prevent Alcohol-Induced Flushing
For some, sipping on cocktails does more than just tipsy, it makes your skin red as beets. There is an old way to prevent skin redness associated with taking antihistamines, but this is a bad idea. That’s why.
This type of tide (sometimes colloquially referred to as the “Asian glow” or “Asian tide”) is most common among East Asian or Jewish Ashkenazi descent, but it can happen to almost anyone. It all depends on your gene pool and whether it contains a mutated or altered form of the enzyme ALDH2 ( aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 ), which is responsible for breaking down the toxic substance acetaldehyde , a substance that your body metabolizes from alcohol. Those with alcohol-induced flushing actually metabolize alcohol faster, but since ALDH2 does not break down acetaldehyde fast enough, it builds up in the liver and throughout the body. The accumulation of ALDH2, which is also responsible for the processing of histamine, triggers a chemical reaction that causes increased blood flow and redness of the skin.
But it also leads to an increased heart rate, headaches and nausea. It’s like an instant hangover.Taking an H2 blocker (an antihistamine) has been shown to slow the breakdown of alcohol to acetaldehyde in the bloodstream, but this can lead to much more serious problems beyond the appearance of the lobster. Daryl Davis , director of the Alcohol and Brain Research Laboratory at USC, explains :
“Using histamine-2 blockers to reduce Asian tide may increase alcohol consumption and increase the risk of stomach cancer, esophageal cancer, and a type of skin cancer called squamous cell carcinoma. Using H2 blockers may allow an Asian glow sufferer to drink more alcohol, but that person should not. It’s just unreasonable. “
This is a danger not only for you, but for others as well. Dr. Ann Manzardo , professor and behavioral pharmacologist at the University of Kansas Medical Center, explains that while H2 blockers can slow alcohol metabolism, they raise peak blood alcohol levels to potentially dangerous levels. Some studies show that the use of H2 blockers increases the concentration of ethanol in the blood, which can lead to significantly exceeding legal driving limits and significantly impair your motor skills, even after drinking just a couple of drinks. Davis goes on to say that you may not even be aware of your violation, so you keep drinking more:
“This is a dangerous practice because a person may end up consuming excessive amounts of alcohol because, for a while, they become less aware of the behavioral effects of alcohol. But ultimately ethanol saturates the system, and higher levels prevail, which leads to increased behavioral changes in the person, including greater impairment of judgment and even death due to alcohol poisoning. “
To make matters worse, many of those who use H2 blockers to drink more are tolerating the drug, Davis says. Eventually, they have to take more antihistamines while drinking, which further slows down the breakdown of acetaldehyde. As Sean Nordt, toxicologist and assistant professor of emergency clinical medicine at USC’s Keck School of Medicine, puts it , you blushed for a reason. Your body is telling you to quit drinking, and taking medications to cover up that warning doesn’t mean your body is still not telling you.
Of course, redness after just one sip of wine can be unpleasantly unpleasant. And it can be especially hard not to give up under peer pressure when all of your friends regularly drink and have an unwritten commitment to “not drink.” But there are other ways to deal with alcohol-induced hot flashes that don’t involve taking the wrong medication to make your body shut up and allow you to drink.
First, you can use this condition to your advantage. If you are not thirsty, use that as an excuse . If you tell people that you will blush and have a headache, no one will instigate you to be confused. Or, if you’re okay with your makeup, you can also use a green tint color corrector to minimize redness on your skin. Finally, if you are worried about photographs, redness can always be corrected by fasting. There are many apps with which you can easily customize the coloring before posting your photos to Instagram.