found to be associated with lower risk for alcohol dependence and heavy drinking. The hypothesized mechanism for this protection is higher transient levels of acetaldehyde, which can produce a stronger response to alcohol, including a “flushing reaction” (see Wall, 2005 for a review). Although acetaldehyde levels are difficult to directly measure in humans, animal models have demonstrated that faster elimination of alcohol, due in part to high ADH activity, can create a short-term acetaldehyde “burst” which is associated with reduced alcohol intake (Quintanilla et al., 2007).
