11LOKO30
Gettin’ Loco for Loko
Ban on caffeinated alcohol beverage brings mass controversy
By: Kervan Rikh
“Hey what are you doing tonight? Let’s get some Four Lokos,” sound the teens across the nation on a typical Friday night speaking of the product that is sweeping the nation. Colleges all over the nation are starting to ban this drink on their campus as students are being hospitalized and killed due to it.
In the New Jersey area, colleges such as Ramapo, Rider, Farleigh Dickinson, and Drew have recently banned the drink on their campuses. Colleges such as Ohio State and Michigan have also joined in this act to get Four Loko off the shelf. Ramapo has been the most aggressive in this ban after 23 intoxicated students and their guests were hospitalized, six of them had been drinking Four Loko. At Drew University in Madison, the college took a different approach that states having possession of the drink is a serious violation of the student code and students can face fines up to two-hundred fifty dollars and suspension from student housing. Another college, Ohio State, took a more subtle approach that allows students over 21 to possess and drink Four Loko unless state law prohibits it.
Although there have been several accidents and it seems like something to do immediately, the ban on Four Loko has caused controversy across America. Matt Manning of Michigan State says, “The drink is giving people exactly what they want and isn’t the problem but only a portion of a larger, dangerous cultural trend.” He is referring to the problem of underage drinking in America. The problem with Four Loko and underage drinking is that kids under the age of 21 starts consuming the drink and eventually cannot handle the amount of alcohol content and leads to dangerous nights. Mr. Manning closes his statement by stating, “Part of the reason the U.S. drinking age is 21 is because there’s a hope — and probably only a hope — that young people will be knowledgeable enough by the time they turn 21 to drink responsibly.”
The drink is potentially so dangerous because, “the caffeine masks the intoxicating and depressant effects of the alcohol and makes people feel more awake as they drink,” states David McBride, director of Student Health Services at Boston University. The drink, leaving people more intoxicated than they think, has brought many black-outs and hospital visits than most other drinks.
In a November 17th press conference, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) stated that, “the consumption of beverages containing added caffeine and alcohol is associated with risky behaviors that may lead to hazardous and life-threatening situations.” The FDA did give warnings statements to the makers of Four Loko and implemented a ban that makes the drink in its current state to be removed from shelves nationwide by December 13th.
The drink is a fruity, alcoholic malt beverage that combines alcohol and caffeine to get a label of “blackout in a can.” Hubpages.com states, “Not just a power-house in calories, ‘Four Loko’ ranked fourth in sales growth in 2009.” This number is astonishing as it displays how many people want and care for this drink that is allegedly “liquid cocaine.”
