FDA Bans Alcoholic Energy Drinks

You may have seen this story in yesterday’s Inquirer. The AP (11/18) reported that, the Food and Drug Administration issued warning letters Wednesday to four manufacturers of alcoholic energy drinks, saying the caffeine added to their beverages is an “unsafe food additive”.

In other words, the combination of caffeine and alcohol in drinks is UNSAFE. Think about being on a caffeine high and hammered. They’re callling it a ‘state of wide-awake drunk.’ Think walking dead. Evidence has shown their consumption has led to alcohol poisoning, car accidents and assaults.

The New York Times (11/18, A25, Goodnough) reported that the FDA issued warning letters to four manufacturers of these drinks, giving them 15 days to stop adding caffeine to the products. One of the companies named was Phusion Projects, which makes the top-selling caffeinated alcoholic drink, Four Loko.

Some of the controversial drinks, which often come in large containers, have the same alcohol content as four or five beers. They’re sold under names like Joose and Moonshot. Their nicknames are more revealing: “blackout in a can” and “liquid cocaine.”

Our recommendation. Drink OJ.