The part alcohol played in the landslide victory of the Democratic Party of Japan
The man in the picture is LDP Finance Minister Shoichi Nakagawa, appearing severely over-tired at a G7 press conference in Rome in February. The incident forced his resignation as a minister, and in yesterday’s election he lost his seat after 26 years as an MP.
Mr Nakagawa seemingly belonged to that group of Asians who drink very heavily, mostly spirits like Scotch whisky. It’s good news that he now takes nothing stronger than green tea but I wonder if it might have been better for him all round if instead he had belonged to the segment of the Asian population – about half of that ethnic group – who are in effect prevented from drinking too much by the condition known as Asian Flush or Alcohol Flush Reaction.
Essentially what happens is that when alcohol is ingested the body doesn’t break down acetaldehyde. This is a nasty by-product of metabolising alcohol which makes a person go red in the face with increased heart-rate, pulsating headache and so on. It’s extremely uncomfortable and as a result rates of alcoholism in Asia are as much as 20 per cent less than in the West.
The mechanism is very similar to a drug that has proved quite effective over the years for treating alcoholism but is not particularly fashionable, perhaps because “spiritual” or psychological methods are preferred – disulfiram (Antabuse). If an alcoholic takes Antabuse every day – and it’s vital to have a “buddy” such as a spouse or colleague to check the tablet is swallowed – then the unpleasant effects caused when he takes a drink are often enough to deter him from drinking.
Some really keen drinkers have been known to simply drink through the reaction, but they’re putting themselves at risk of more serious problems and even death. In the case of Asian flush sufferers, the indigestion remedies Zantac and Pepcid-AC have an – as yet unproven – reputation for ameliorating the effects of the reaction to alcohol.
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