I’m sure most people have taken notice of the rapid growth in popularity of alcoholic energy drinks among younger generations recently. Drinks such as Joose, Sparks, and Tilt seem to have popped up overnight as the widespread drink of choice for college age people. I wasn’t even aware of the existence of these drinks until recently, but since then can hardly go anywhere without seeing someone holding one at a party or buying one at a convenience store. One brand of alcoholic energy drink, Four Loko, has been receiving an immense amount of negative attention as of late due to the string of deaths involved with its consumption. There is some debate over the physical effects that the combination of alcohol and caffeine can have on a person. Some debate that consuming these drinks is equivalent to drinking a cup of coffee followed with a few alcoholic beverages, but others estimate that combining these two beverages into one drink can be dangerous. Caffeine’s ability to mask the effect of alcohol can lead to people not noticing how intoxicated they actually are and the FDA is not entirely sure at what point this becomes a danger. Recent cases include young men and women entering the hospital with cardiac arrest and in some cases, dying from it. The FDA is currently investigating Four Loko, and other alcoholic energy drinks, to better understand the effects that these drinks can have. The problem existing is that they must rely on accepted scientific evidence that these beverages are harmful in order to remove them from the shelves of our local corner stores and liquor stores. I think that the fact that there are people losing their lives in connection to drinks like Four Loko should elicit some emergency act on the FDA’s part. Isn’t there some way of stopping the sale of these drinks until further investigation has been completed? I understand the long process that the FDA has on their hands, but how many more irresponsible youths with die during the wait? There has been mention of sending disclaimers to manufacturers of these products warning them of their potential danger, but in the end it is up to the manufacture not to distribute them. I think in the end distribution will continue as long as it coincides with the amount of money companies are raking in due to the high sales volume, so this small gesture will only create a dent in the availability of these drinks. In my opinion, the FDA should have more power to remove products from the market that have such a reputation for hazard even if their investigations have not been completed.
Kristin Moseley’s blog post titled “FDA and Four Loko” has an impressive argument against the sale of Four Loko drinks; however, I disagree with her stance on this issue.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Moseley may be correct about the potentially dangerous combination of caffeine and alcohol that’s in a Four Loko drink, isn’t our whole world filled with potential dangers similar to this one? As a student at one of the nation’s top party schools in America – UT - I have seen my fair share of Four Loko’s. In fact, the very recent ban on this energy alcoholic drink has sent many of my classmates into a bit of a rage, and I can see why.
Kristin justifiably argues that it is the FDA’s responsibility to take this drink off shelves in order to stop its usage. And they have done just that. But is banning this drink really going to keep college students from substituting it with an equally dangerous one? The ban was spurred by a concentrated group of nine college students sent to the emergency room after consuming too many Four Lokos. Was it Four Loko’s fault, or was this drink a casualty of an unfortunately inevitable college experience? Everclear – a 190-proof liquor that is only subtly detectable in alcoholic beverages in comparison to its safer counterparts – is sending way more college students to get their stomachs pumped than Four Loko. Personally, I have attended a handful of parties where my friends opted to drink Four Loko’s in order to avoid a more hazardous Everclear concoction. The responsible thing may be to drink neither, but the reality is that a decision like that doesn’t happen often enough.
Moseley continues her stance by stating that Four Loko’s concoction causes the drinker to be unaware of how drunk he or she really is. This may be accurate, but I have yet to find an alcoholic combination, less an incredibly diluted (and therefore undesirable) mixed drink or beer, that actually allows someone to be aware of their actual blood alcohol content. Dipping your red solo cup into a trash can of punch is a far more of a lethal action than drinking a can of pre-proportioned liquor and caffeine. In fact, the caffeine actually has the ability to decrease the amount of liquor some people consume since its effects are quite similar to that of alcohol.
All things considered, Kristen’s article against Four Loko is very reasonable, but I disagree on the basis that the drink’s effects are not unique to its brand. Banning this drink will only shift consumer demand to an equally dangerous, or even a more perilous, alcoholic beverage. Only time will tell if the ban is truly effective, but I am of the opinion that its rationale is a little “loko”.
FDA and Four Loko
ReplyDeleteI wanted to write in response to Kristin Moseley's article about the rising popularity of the alcoholic energy drinks.
I was originally going to do an editorial on this article and was therefore very interested in another's point of view about the subject. I have to say I am in full agreement with Kristin and, literally, couldn't have said it better; the FDA needs to have more control over the situation, they need to act immediately due to the fact that many more young lives are being taken by these ridiculous drinks. I hadn't heard of them until recently when some friends of friends had drank Joose(another alcoholic energy drink Kristin mentioned) and hadn't got one for each of them, but split one and were unable to function. I had also heard of Four Loko in a recent trip to College Station and the word was that many at the party were, "way past the point of drunken stupidity." There were many who became sick that night and suffered a very painful hangover throughout the next day and I was told to never try one, which I intend not to. I do agree with Kristin's idea on having the FDA stopping the sale of the drinks until further investigation but shouldn't the fact that people are losing their lives be enough reason. Sure, regular alcoholic beverages can bring harm but not by consuming one drink like the energy drinks can. Also, there is alcohol poisoning due to someone consuming too much alcohol but what about the cardiac arrest issue that the alcoholic energy drinks are now bringing to the table? Perhaps there should be more awareness about the danger of these beverages either on the news/media or maybe even on the drink itself. Quoting Kristin, I do believe "the FDA should have more power to remove products from the market that have such a reputation for hazard even if their investigations have not been completed." Though they are popular, perhaps if there were a pause in the distribution many would wonder and therefore become more aware of the danger.