NOVEMBER 19,2010
FOUR LAND is sold in a 25.3-
ounce car, has an alcohol content
of 12 percent by volume and con-
tains 135 milligrams of caffeine.
That's the same amount of alcoh-
ol in four to five beers and the
caffeine content of a Red Bull and
an espresso shot.
However, the company's founders still aren't convinced their product is unsafe for consumers.
s all needed to con- Cole sk into corn- could around ce. They many corn as turning
"If it were unsafe, popular drinks like rum and colas or Irish coffees that have been consumed safely and responsibly for years would face the same scrutiny that our products have recently faced," the founders said in a statement on their website.
The company's statement said if Four Loko was unsafe, the Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, the federal bureau that approves alcoholic beverages, should not have approved the products.
Nationally, Four Loko isn't the only drink causing worry.
HISTORY OF CONTROVERSY
Health officials have raised concerns about mixing caffeine and alcohol. Jenny McKee, health educator at the Wellness Resource Center at Watkins Memorial Health Center, said that mixing the two can lead to problems.
The Food and Drug Administration recently announced it was warning four companies that produce caffeinated, alcoholic beverages that their products are unsafe.
The FDA has been examining these products since November 2009 and concluded that caffeine is an "unsafe food additive."
Caffeine is a stimulant and alcohol is a depressant. The two have opposite effects.
Alcohol slows down bodily functions like heart rate and breathing while caffeine increases heart rate and alertness. The combination could potentially be heart stopping, McKee said.
t for the
another content of the students ranged from 0.12 percent to 0.35 percent. According to blood-alcoholcontent.org, a BAC level of 0.40 can be lethal for more than half of adults.
Following these incidents, several states made moves to ban the drink. Lawmakers in New York City and Pennsylvania started asking liquor stores to remove Four Loko from their shelves. The beverage has been officially banned in four states: Washington, Michigan, Utah and Oklahoma.
Freda Warfield, a spokesperson for the Kansas Alcoholic Beverage Control, said the state had been monitoring Four Loko closely.
"We will take any actions necessary to keep our Kansas safe," Warfield said.
Mike Hathaway, manager of Cork and Barrel, 2000 W. 23rd St., said he expects a spike in sales as a result of Four Loko going decaf.
However, in order to ban the drink in Kansas, legislation would need to be passed. The Kansas Legislature reconvenes January 11.
REACTION
McKee said the drinks could pose health risks even if they do not contain caffeine. She said that some people still might not understand how much alcohol the drinks have, especially Four Loko.
"If it has three to four drinks, spend three to four hours sipping on it," she said.
"I suspect that sales will go through the roof here until they're all gone." he said.
Brad Wandell, a junior from Ellicott City, Md., said he's surprised by the controversy. He said he has been drinking Four Loko for about six months, but never had any problems with the caf-
A problem, Mckee said, is that one container isn't one drink.
ple are having run with it," he said.
"There's going to be a hole in a lot of our hearts for a while, including mine," said Cole, a senior from Boston. "Matt was a huge part of all of our lives. He left a hole that's going to be difficult to fill."
United Brands Company
—Produces Joose and Max
"But it's only a matter of time before another product will replace it," he said.
Edited by Kelsey Nill
New Century Brewing Co.
Gravity HG Orange, and
"We're all going to miss Matt," Cole said. "A day is never going to go by that I don't think about him."
Matt was an effortless comedian and everyone's favorite jokester. Even in death, memories such as Cole's could still make people laugh.
The circumstances of Matt's death make filling that hole all the more difficult. Ashley Brown, one of Matt's closest friends from high school, expressed her frustrations in a poem she recited from the lectern:
Produces Moonshot
Gravity HG Orange, and Lemon Lime Core Spiked
"A permanent result has me utterly convinced, you have no idea how much you'd be missed/ At ease
to it to create a new and outrageous memory together. The laughter that filled the church meant everyone understood at least that much.
Phusion Projects, LLC
—Produces Four Loko
Edited by Clark Goble
MEN'S BASKETBALL | 1B
Selby cleared by NCAA to play starting Dec.18
The freshman from Baltimore faces a nine-game suspension and a sizable fine for taking impermissible benefits as a prospect.
SAFETY | 3A
The KU Public Safety officers patrol campus nightly.
INDEX
Making the rounds at KU
Classifieds...6B
Crossword...4A
Cryptoquips...4A
Opinion...5A
Sports...1B
Sudoku...4A
WEATHER
HARRY POTTER | 6A
The latest installment in the series sold out in theaters.
Film pulls in young adults
TODAY
63 30
TUESDAY
Partly cloudy
52 33
WEDNESDAY
Sunny
57 20
Partly cloudy weather.com
8
All contents, unless stated otherwise; © 2010 The University Daily Kansan
3
---
8