WordNet

burn brightly; "Every star seemed to flare with new intensity" (同)flame up, blaze up, burn up
a shape that spreads outward; "the skirt had a wide flare" (同)flair
a sudden burst of flame
a sudden recurrence or worsening of symptoms; "a colitis flare"; "infection can cause a lupus flare"
am unwanted reflection in an optical system (or the fogging of an image that is caused by such a reflection)
reddening of the skin spreading outward from a focus of infection or irritation
(baseball) a fly ball hit a short distance into the outfield
a device that produces a bright light for warning or illumination or identification
a burst of light used to communicate or illuminate (同)flash
a sudden outburst of emotion; "she felt a flare of delight"; "she could not control her flare of rage"
shine with a sudden light; "The night sky flared with the massive bombardment" (同)flame
without blushing; "his principal opponent unblushingly declared victory before the ballots had been counted"
yellowish edible agaric that usually turns red when touched (同)blusher, Amanita rubescens

PrepTutorEJDIC

(風などで)〈炎が〉ゆらゆら燃える / 〈怒りなどが〉急に燃え上がえる / (らっぱの口のように)外に向かって開く;〈スカートが〉フレアになっている / 〈U〉ぱっと燃え上がる炎(光) / 〈C〉照明装置;照明弾 / 〈C〉《単数形で》(感情などの)ほとばしり.爆発《+『of』+『名』》 / 〈U〉(らっぱの口のような)(…の)末広がり《+『of』+『名』》
赤いこと,赤さ
恥知らずの,ずうずうしい / 赤面しない

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出典(authority):フリー百科事典『ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』「2017/10/17 04:23:08」(JST)

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A young woman blushing and covering her face.

Blushing is the reddening of a person's face due to psychological reasons. It is normally involuntary and triggered by emotional stress, such as that associated with embarrassment, anger, or romantic stimulation.

Severe blushing is common in people who suffer social anxiety in which the person experiences extreme and persistent anxiety in social and performance situations.

Summary

Blushing is generally distinguished, despite a close physiological relation, from flushing, which is more intensive and extends over more of the body, and seldom has a mental source. If redness persists for abnormal amounts of time after blushing, then it may be considered an early sign of rosacea.^[1] Idiopathic craniofacial erythema is a medical condition where a person blushes strongly with little or no provocation. Just about any situation can bring on intense blushing and it may take one or two minutes for the blush to disappear. Severe blushing can make it difficult for the person to feel comfortable in either social or professional situations. People who have social phobia are particularly prone to idiopathic craniofacial erythema. Psychological treatments and medication can help control blushing.

Some people are very sensitive to emotional stress. Given a stimulus such as embarrassment, the person's sympathetic nervous system will cause blood vessels to open wide, flooding the skin with blood and resulting in reddening of the face. In some people, the ears, neck and upper chest may also blush. As well as causing redness, blushing can sometimes make the affected area feel hot.

Erythrophobia is the fear of blushing,^[2]^[3] from Ancient Greek: ερυθρός "red" and Ancient Greek: φοβία "fear" literally "fear of redness".

Physiology of blushing

There is evidence that the blushing region is anatomically different in structure. The facial skin, for example, has more capillary loops per unit area and generally more vessels per unit volume than other skin areas. In addition, blood vessels of the cheek are wider in diameter, are nearer the surface, and visibility is less diminished by tissue fluid. These specific characteristics of the architecture of the facial vessels led Wilkin in an overview of possible causes of facial flushing to the following conclusion: "[...] increased capacity and greater visibility can account for the limited distribution of flushing".^[4]

Evidence for special vasodilation mechanisms was reported by Mellander and his colleagues (Mellander, Andersson, Afzelius, & Hellstrand. 1982). They studied buccal segments of the human facial veins in vitro. Unlike veins from other areas of the skin, facial veins responded with an active myogenic contraction to passive stretch and were therefore able to develop an intrinsic basal tone. Additionally Mellander et al. showed that the veins in this specific area were also supplied with beta-adrenoceptors in addition to the common alpha-adrenoceptors. These beta-adrenoceptors could exert a dilator mechanism on the above-described basal tone of the facial cutaneous venous plexus. Mellander and his colleagues propose that this mechanism is involved in emotional blushing. Drummond has partially confirmed this effect by pharmacological blocking experiments (Drummond. 1997). In a number of trials, he blocked both alpha-adrenergic receptors (with phentolamine) and beta-adrenergic receptors (with propranolol introduced transcutaneously by iontophoresis). Blushing was measured at the forehead using a dual channel laser Doppler flowmeter. Subjects were undergraduate students divided into frequent and infrequent blushers according to self-report. Their mean age was 22.9 years, which is especially favorable for assessing blushing, since young subjects are more likely to blush and blush more intensively. The subjects underwent several procedures, one of which was designed to produce blushing. Alpha-adrenergic blockade with phentolamine had no influence on the amount of blushing in frequent or in infrequent blushers, indicating that release of sympathetic vasoconstrictor tone does not substantially influence blushing. This result was expected since vasoconstrictor tone in the facial area is known to be generally low (van der Meer. 1985). Beta-adrenergic blockade with propranolol on the other hand decreased blushing in both frequent and infrequent blushers. However, despite complete blockade, blood flow still increased substantially during the embarrassment and blushing inducing procedure. Additional vasodilator mechanisms must therefore be involved.

Psychology of blushing

Charles Darwin devoted Chapter 13 of his 1872 The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals to complex emotional states including self-attention, shame, shyness, modesty and blushing. He described blushing as "... the most peculiar and most human of all expressions."

Several different psychological and psycho-physiological mechanisms for blushing have been hypothesized by Crozier (2010): "An explanation that emphasises the blush’s visibility proposes that when we feel shame we communicate our emotion to others and in doing so we send an important signal to them. It tells them something about us. It shows that we are ashamed or embarrassed, that we recognise that something is out of place. It shows that we are sorry about this. It shows that we want to put things right. To blush at innuendo is to show awareness of its implications and to display modesty that conveys that you are not brazen or shameless. The blush makes a particularly effective signal because it is involuntary and uncontrollable. Of course, a blush can be unwanted [but the] costs to the blusher on specific occasions are outweighed by the long-term benefits of being seen as adhering to the group and by the general advantages the blush provides: indeed the costs may enhance the signal’s perceived value."^[5] A number of techniques may be used to help prevent or reduce blushing.^[6]

In some parts of the world, making a person blush without being crude earns a kiss from that person.^[7]

It has also been suggested that blushing and flushing are the visible manifestations of the physiological rebound of the basic instinctual fight/flight mechanism, when physical action is not possible.^[8]

References

^ "Idiopathic Craniofacial Erythema: Understanding and Managing Facial Blushing". Healthline. Retrieved 2017-08-10.
^ Gieler, Uwe; Kusnir, Daniel; Tausk, Francisco A. (2008-11-14). Clinical Management in Psychodermatology. Springer Science & Business Media. pp. 59–. ISBN 9783540347187. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
^ W, Stekel, (2013-07-04). Conditions Of Nervous Anxiety And Their Treatment. Routledge. pp. 236–. ISBN 9781136299315. Retrieved 7 December 2014.
^ Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, Wilkin. 1988
^ Crozier, R. (2010), "The Puzzle of Blushing", The Psychologist, Vol 23. No 5, May 2010, pp.390-393.]
^ "How Can People Stop Blushing Forever". Retrieved 2017-03-31.
^ Mak (1977), "Adolescent mating practices", "Postmodern Psychology", Vol 42, No 2, Sept (1977), pp.69-73
^ Salzen, E. (2010), "Flushing and blushing" letter in The Psychologist, Vol 23, No 7, July 2010, p.539.

UpToDate Contents

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English Journal

Role of surgical thoracic sympathetic interruption in treatment of facial blushing: A systematic review.

Girish G1, D'souza RE2, D'souza P3, Lewis MG4, Baker DM2.
Postgraduate medicine.Postgrad Med.2017 Jan 25:1-9. doi: 10.1080/00325481.2017.1283207. [Epub ahead of print]
OBJECTIVES: This paper aims to review the evidence to support the effectiveness of sympathectomy as a treatment for facial blushing in terms of relief of facial blushing, patient satisfaction, recurrence of blushing, patients regretting treatment and its associated complications.METHODS: A systemati
PMID 28116967

Cognitive Therapy and Task Concentration Training Applied as Intensified Group Therapies for Social Anxiety Disorder with Fear of Blushing-A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Härtling S1, Klotsche J1,2,3, Heinrich A1, Hoyer J1.
Clinical psychology & psychotherapy.Clin Psychol Psychother.2016 Nov;23(6):509-522. doi: 10.1002/cpp.1975. Epub 2015 Oct 9.
The current study examines the efficacy of intensified group therapy for social anxiety disorder with fear of blushing. Task concentration training (TCT) and cognitive therapy (CT) were applied during one weekend and compared with a waiting list condition in a randomized controlled trial including 8
PMID 26450116

Facial Blushing: Patient Selection and Long-Term Results.

Kristian S1, Christer D2.
Thoracic surgery clinics.Thorac Surg Clin.2016 Nov;26(4):459-463. doi: 10.1016/j.thorsurg.2016.06.011. Epub 2016 Aug 4.
Facial blushing, associated with social phobia, may have severe negative impact on the quality of daily life. The first line of treatment should be psychological and/or pharmacologic. In severe cases not responding to nonsurgical treatment, surgical sympathetic denervation is an option. A thorough d
PMID 27692205