4 Loko Ban

Today will go down in history as one of the worst days ever in the eyes of college students in Ohio. Yes, today is the day that 4 Loko, an alcoholic energy drink, was banned from being sold in Ohio. A little background info on 4 Loko for those who haven't heard of it. The drink comes in a 23.5-ounce can in a bunch of fruity flavors. It contains 12% alcohol, making it equivalent to about six beers, and the caffeine is equivalent to about five cups of coffee. Oh, and the cost of these drinks? About $2.75. In the minds of college students, it's a really cheap way to get really drunk. In the last couple of months there have been numerous cases of alcohol poisoning and even a death in college students across the country who had been consuming this drink.

Rumors of a ban have been circulating and have even gone through in many states. The day came for Ohioans today. I have already heard arguments on the ban and people stating that people just need to pay more attention to how much they are drinking, or that the combination of caffeine and alcohol has no effect on them. I have a few points to make on that:

1. Yes, people need to pay more attention to what they are drinking, BUT we are also talking about college students. Many just want to get drunk and want to do it as fast as possible. That's where 4 Loko comes in. If they don't realize that they are really drinking the equivalent of SIX drinks instead of one, it could definitely mean trouble.
2. Just because a mix of caffeine and alcohol does not effect YOU, that does not mean that it does not effect other people. Let's think about it. Alcohol is a depressant, causing processes in your body to slow. Caffeine is a stimulant, which causes body processes to speed up. Our bodies are not made to process large amount of stimulants and depressants at the same time. Now let's consider someone with a heart problem. Think about two different substances telling your heart to speed up and slow down at the same time. Sound like a good idea?

I personally have never tried 4 Loko and never would because I don't know how it would effect me. I realize that some people can drink it and have no problems. My point however, is that there have been so many problems with this drink and other drinks like it that there is obviously something about it that is unsafe, hence the ban. A point was also made that there are plenty of other alcoholic drinks out there that produce the same buzz/level of drunkenness or what-have-you as 4 Loko. Fine. Drink those. Instead of being concerned about having one less option of things to drink to get wasted, why don't we think about the deaths and serious illnesses that have been caused by drinking it?

I'm not judging anyone who drinks 4 Loko or who disagrees with the ban. All I am saying is that working on a college campus has opened my eyes to how much this drink can impact an individual and if people really took the time to research the issue, they might be surprised.

That is all. Have a great day! =)