<P> Higher body masses and the prevalence of high levels of alcohol dehydrogenase in an individual increase alcohol tolerance . </P> <P> Not all differences in tolerance can be traced to biochemistry . Differences in tolerance levels are also influenced by socio - economic and cultural difference including diet, average body weight and patterns of consumption . </P> <P> An estimated one out of twenty people have an alcohol flush reaction . It is not in any way an indicator for the drunkenness of an individual . It is colloquially known as "face flush", a condition where the body metabolizes alcohol nearly 100 - times less efficiently into acetaldehyde, a toxic metabolite . Flushing, or blushing, is associated with the erythema (reddening caused by dilation of capillaries) of the face, neck, and shoulder, after consumption of alcohol . </P> <Ol> <Li> ^ Jump up to: "Alcohol and Tolerance". National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), Alcohol Alert (28). April 1995 . Retrieved 2009 - 08 - 13 . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Osier, Michael V.; Pakstis, Andrew J.; Soodyall, Himla; Comas, David; Goldman, David; Odunsi, Adekunle; Okonofua, Friday; Parnas, Josef; et al. (2002). "A Global Perspective on Genetic Variation at the ADH Genes Reveals Unusual Patterns of Linkage Disequilibrium and Diversity". American Journal of Human Genetics . 71 (1): 84--99 . doi: 10.1086 / 341290 . PMC 384995 . PMID 12050823 . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ "Alcohol Use Disorder". NY Times . 2013 . Retrieved July 21, 2016 . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Mail & al. (eds., 2002): Alcohol Use Among American Indians and Alaska Natives: Multiple Perspectives on a Complex Problem . NIAAA Research Monograph No. 37 . Bethesda, MD: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Caetano, Raul; Clark, Catherine L (1998). "Trends in Alcohol - Related Problems among Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics: 1984 - 1995". Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research . 22 (2): 534 . doi: 10.1111 / j. 1530 - 0277.1998. tb03685. x . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Karen Chartier; Raul Caetano . "Ethnicity and Health Disparities in Alcohol Research". </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Yin, S. - J.; Cheng, T. - C.; Chang, C. - P.; Chen, Y. - J.; Chao, Y. - C.; Tang, H. - S.; Chang, T. - M.; Wu, C. - W. (1988). "Human stomach alcohol and aldehyde dehydrogenases (ALDH): A genetic model proposed for ALDH III isozymes". Biochemical Genetics . 26 (5--6): 343--60 . doi: 10.1007 / BF00554070 . PMID 3214414 . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Fenna, D; Schaefer, O; Mix, L; Gilbert, JA (1971). "Ethanol metabolism in various racial groups". Canadian Medical Association journal . 105 (5): 472--5 . PMC 1931291 . PMID 5112118 . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Bennion L.; Li T.K. (1976). "Alcohol metabolism in American Indians and whites". New England Journal of Medicine . 294 (1): 9--13 . doi: 10.1056 / nejm197601012940103 . PMID 1244489 . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Waldram, J.B.; Herring, A. & Young, K. (1995). Aboriginal Health in Canada: Historical, Cultural, and Epidemiological Perspectives . Toronto: University of Toronto Press . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Saggers, S. & Gray, D. (1998b). Dealing with Alcohol: Indigenous Usage in Australia, New Zealand and Canada . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ "Myth or reality? The Asian alcohol' gene' explained". Difford's Guide . September 10, 2013 . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ "Identifying the Signs of Intoxication" (PDF). Government of Western Australia . December 2010 . Archived from the original (PDF) on March 27, 2011 . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Eng, MY; Luczak, SE; Wall, TL (2007). "ALDH2, ADH1B, and ADH1C genotypes: A literature review". Alcohol Research & Health . 30 (1): 22--7 . PMID 17718397 . </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Peng, Yi; Shi, Hong; Qi, Xue - bin; Xiao, Chun - jie; Zhong, Hua; Ma, Run - lin Z; Su, Bing (2010). "The ADH1B Arg47His polymorphism in farming populations and expansion of rice domestication in history". BMC Evolutionary Biology . 10: 15 . doi: 10.1186 / 1471 - 2148 - 10 - 15 . PMC 2823730 . PMID 20089146 . Lay summary--ScienceNow (January 20, 2010). </Li> <Li> Jump up ^ Ohta, Shigeo; Ohsawa, Ikuroh; Kamino, Kouzin; Ando, Fujiko; Shimokata, Hiroshi (2004). "Mitochondrial ALDH2 Deficiency as an Oxidative Stress". Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences . 1011: 36--44 . doi: 10.1196 / annals. 1293.004 . PMID 15126281 . </Li> </Ol>

Some individuals have a higher tolerance for the effects of alcohol than do others