Rhinitis contrast to allergic rhinitis which can be developed at any age. Individuals with vasomotor rhinitis typically experience symptoms year-round, though symptoms may be exacerbated in the spring and autumn when rapid weather changes are more common. An estimated 17 million United States citizens have vasomotor rhinitis. Drinking alcohol may cause rhinitis as well as worsen asthma (see alcohol-induced respiratory reactions). In certain populations, particularly those of East Asian countries such as Japan, these reactions have a nonallergic basis. In other populations, particularly those of European descent, a genetic variant in the gene that metabolizes ethanol to acetaldehyde, ADH1B, is associated
Rhinitis with alcohol-induced rhinitis. It is suggested that this variant metabolizes ethanol to acetaldehyde too quickly for further processing by ALDH2 and thereby leads to the accumulation of acetaldehyde and rhinitis symptoms. In these cases, alcohol-induced rhinitis may be of the "mixed rhinitis" type and, it seems likely, most cases of alcohol-induced rhinitis in non-Asian populations reflect true allergic response to the non-ethanol and/or contaminants in alcoholic beverages, particularly when these beverages are wines or beers. Alcohol-exacerbated rhinitis is more frequent in individuals with a history of rhinitis exacerbated by aspirin. Aspirin and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), particularly those that