Four Loko is cheap and easy to find at local convenience stores, but it packs a powerful punch of alcohol and caffeine

The recent hospitalization of several college kids in Washington State has revealed the apparently widespread consumption at college parties around the country of a beverage product called Four Loko. My question is: how long will it be before this dangerous but popular drink makes it to a high school party in Lake Highlands?

Sign up for our newsletter!

* indicates required

College substance abuse has always been an issue since 2 decades ago. Some use it for stimulation while others have good intentions. There were a number of high-performing students who use Provigil to study as it improves their focus. They usually order online because of state laws and makes it hard to regulate the stimulant so students usually order them online from buy-modafinil-online.org/. But the Four Loko reports have a different effect on individuals.

Some background: Earlier this month, police arrived at a grocery store parking lot to find a boy with a bloody nose in the backseat of a car with an unconscious girl. They’d been at a house party, where police found three girls passed out on a bed and an out-of-it guy in the backyard. Three more were sprawled in a car outside and another girl was passed out on the bathroom floor. The kids were taken to the hospital, where the staff suspected date rape drug. Instead, tests revealed high concentrations of alcohol, caffeine and sugar – the main components in the party’s beverage-of-choice, Four Loko.

Four Loko, referred to by young people as “blackout in a can,” is a 23 ounce can of fruity malt liquor. It has the alcohol equivalent of a six-pack of light beer and as much caffeine as the strongest Starbucks. It’s been called “liquid cocaine” by some, and the internet is full of YouTube videos made by students drinking the stuff. Multiple Facebook pages touting its benefits get thousands of “likes” each day. College kids could not be more enamored.

One great thing about Lake Highlands is the way graduates who go off to college play host to visiting high schoolers, showing them around the campus and giving them tours of the dorm. Most LH seniors and many juniors find these glimpses into university life to be a valuable tool in selecting a school. Many parents say their students get a boost of motivation when they see how much fun college life will be. Question: While they’re picking up a loyalty to the team and a college logo t-shirt, how many will be bringing back a fascination with this trend and a determination to give it a try?

The incident in Washington has caused several colleges to ban the drink, and the FDA is investigating whether caffeine and alcohol can be safely mixed. Attorneys General around the country are considering bans in their state. “They’re marketed to kids by using fruit flavors that mask the taste of alcohol, and they have such high levels of stimulants that people have not idea how inebriated they really are,” said Rob McKenna, Washington’s Attorney General.

Phusion Projects LLC of Chicago, maker of the drink, has added a letter to their website addressing the incident. Sadly, most college kids and high school students are more likely to be influenced by one glimpse of their smiling friends holding a can of the stuff.