Much has been in the news lately about the dangers of caffeinated alcohol drinks, and experts weighed in with their concerns in a recent HealthDay News piece:
"The soft drink or energy drink imagery of these drinks is just dangerous window dressing," contends Eric A. Weiss, an emergency medicine expert at Stanford University's School of Medicine in Palo Alto, Calif. "It hides the fact that you're consuming significant amounts of alcohol. And that is potentially hazardous, because it's not only harmful to one's health, but impairs a person's coordination and judgment."
These beverages - one brand which is marketed as a "blackout in a can" - contain anywhere from 6 percent to 12 percent alcohol - equivalent of two to four beers. "And what I worry about as a trauma physician is that someone will drink one can of this stuff and not realize how much alcohol they've consumed," Weiss said.
The article notes that no federal or state laws specifically regulate or ban the sale of caffeinated alcoholic beverages. But after several students were hospitalized after consuming cans of Four Loko, two colleges recently banned the consumption of the drink on their campus.
Previously: Don't add buzz to the booze, says FDA
