It's called yellow fever.
A social phenomenon that describes the preference -- usually among men -- for Asian partners.
And it was precisely Scott Young 's immunity to the "fever" that Helen Kim, a Canadian-Korean, felt drawn to him, she says laughing.
"Part of what attracted me to him was because he had never dated an Asian before," she says in her Toronto-area home with son Noah, 2, in her lap.
"There was no legacy of yellow fever here," Young jokes in return.
Theirs is becoming an increasingly common story in Canada where mixed unions are on the rise. According to Statistics Canada, interracial couples made up 3%, or 452,000, of Canada's married or common-law couples in 2001 -- that's up 35% since 1991.
But while the majority of respondents had no problem dealing with a taxi driver, doctor, supervisor or neighbour of another ethnicity, their response was markedly different when asked how they would feel if their child were to intermarry.
Sixteen percent say it would depend on the race, and 9 % said they would react negatively.
"People in mixed unions tend to be younger, live in urban areas, and tend to be highly educated," said Anne Milan, senior analyst at StatsCan and author of the 2004 report titled Mixed Unions. Experts attribute the rise to Canada's growing diversity.
And some sociologists, like University of Toronto professor Monica Boyd, describe the growing trend as a barometer of social tolerance since marriage is such a binding union between two separate identities.
"Intermarrying is the last frontier in social integration," she said. "It's an intimate act that produces the next generation. It's one of the most important indicators of acceptance and integration into an ongoing social world."
Milan's study found that the Japanese are the most likely to partner outside their group. The long Canadian heritage of the Japanese community partially explains why they have the highest proportion of mixed unions, Milan says.
But unlike the Chinese and South Asians, who are among the least likely to intermarry, the Japanese also have a smaller pool of eligible partners within their own group to choose from, she added.
And what of the children born of these mixed unions? It's often said mixed babies make for beautiful children and Noah is no exception.
His features are distinct, a hypnotic blend of Caucasian and Asian traits: Dark, round eyes set in almond hollows, soft chestnut hair and impossibly porcelain skin.
But if intermarriages result in mixed children, is there a fear of cultural and ethnic dilution?
"The only thing I'm more worried about is if he gravitates more towards one culture," Young said.
Noah is a bright young tot with a growing vocabulary --an English one.
He is already well-versed in hockey jargon -- and deft with a stick-- but only recently learned from his grandmother how to count in Korean.
Kim likens Noah's mixed heritage to her own identity as a Canadian-Korean: She takes the best of both worlds.
"I'll sign him up for Korean lessons but I won't force him. Just how I'll sign him up for French and Spanish," Kim said.
She's already anticipated a scenario in which Noah will be forced to gaze back at himself.
"I asked Scott how he would handle it when Noah comes home crying because someone called him a Ch---," she said.
For now, Noah sits quietly in his mother's lap.
His parents, too, have fallen into a brief silence when asked if it would bother them were their adult son to come home with a partner of another race.
Kim comes back with a resounding "no," while Young offers a more cautious response.
"I have no issue with ethnicity. I have an issue with personality. If it's a culture that forces him to change and become different, we probably wouldn't want that. As long as he can make his own decisions."
