Cheers!

Red Bull and vodka, a popular concoction among today's youth, is specifically warned against on the side of the can ('Do not mix with alcohol'). Sadly, the teens and 20-somethings guzzling the mixture are either unaware or simply don't care. 


Red Bull is heavily caffeinated and spiked with additional stimulants. When mixed with alcohol, it counters the depressive effects of the alcohol. Simply put, you're just as drunk as someone who ingested the same amount of vodka without the Red Bull. You just don't feel it.


To this equation, add the fact that research shows that 'young brains have ... sections that remain unconnected' and that 'the last section (of the brain) to connect is the frontal lobe, responsible for cognitive processes such as reasoning, planning, judgment.' So-called 'high level reasoning' is not reached until the mid-twenties.


Enter Four Loko, also touted as 'blackout in a can' (nice!). A 24oz can contains as much alcohol as a 6-pack of beer. Again, given the added caffeine, you don't feel the buzz as much and therefore, think you can (or need to) drink more. But drunk is drunk, whether the feeling is there or not. Eventually, you're going to puke your guts out ... or pass out ... or worse. And since you aren't feeling the effects of how intoxicated you really are, you're likely to drink more booze than you would otherwise. Hello? Acute alcohol poisoning! Not feeling the true effects means there will also be those thinking they're still ok to drive!  *sigh*


Someone needs to clue the youth in. Hey! Maybe, I just did!