Alcohol And Energy Drinks: A Dangerous Mix

Drinking Both At Once Getting More Popular On Campuses; Leading Researcher Decries It

(CBS)  Research out this week reveals the dangers of mixing alcohol with popular energy drinks such as Red Bull and Adrenaline Rush.

It's a phenomenon sweeping college campuses, and there are even Web sites dedicated to rating the various combinations.

Dr. Mary Claire O'Brien, an emergency room physician and associate professor of emergency medicine at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C., is lead author of the study.

On The Early Show Wednesday, she explained to co-anchor Julie Chen that drinking alcoholic beverages and energy drinks at the same time can in essence delay the perceived effects of the alcohol, misleading people into thinking they're not as affected by it as they really are, in turn endangering their bodies and making risky behavior more likely.

The study included some 4,000 college students from 10 schools.

O'Brien told Chen, "What we know from speaking with college students and from looking at Web sites is that they add energy drinks to alcohol in order to be able to drink more alcohol without passing out, and to party longer. ... I think what they want to do is drink more. That's what our research suggests.

"There is a buzz associated with the high dose of caffeine and the alcohol. One of the medical problems that occurs immediately after that, as the caffeine wears off, the big dose of alcohol kicks in."

"In our study, one in four college drinkers is mixing alcohol with energy drinks. ... We found that they did it in order to be able to drink more without passing out. Indeed, there is a much greater incidence of drunkenness and a much greater incidence of heavy episodic drinking when students mix alcohol with energy drinks.

"But, the real thing we were interested in was the association with serious, alcohol-related consequences, like riding with a drunken driver or being hurt or injured or needing medical treatment. And indeed, all those things were twice as likely among students who mixed alcohol with energy drinks."

O'Brien recalled taking care of a student "a couple years ago who drank enough alcohol mixed with energy drinks to basically be comatose when he arrived in the emergency department.

"And I think it's important to understand why I'm passionate about this subject. I'm a practicing emergency physician. For 20 years, I've been taking care of critically ill and injured patients -- 2.8 million college students drive drunk every year, and a good number of them end up in my emergency department.

"One of the things I have to do for a living is walk into the room and tell the parents that the student's never coming home again, and I'm a mom, so I'm pretty worked up about alcohol-related injuries."

[thebomb475]

mmmmmmm beer as homer says hey lets drink redbull and bud so we can be drunk with wings.like they say redbull gives you wings.LMAO

[valentin73]

mixing these two lethal elements is like doing cocaine and alcohol. You be the judge of that.

[guest86]

That very bad. I found another secret energy drink name is Vamp. www.vampire.com or www.vampirewine.com . See that? I think this drink maybe in high risk. Please look at that. Not good for health? I don''t know.

[andor3]

This article is vague and misleading--what was the "study" they refer to? what question was asked? there is some mention of talking to students and looking at web sites--is that their study?

"as the caffeine wears off, the big dose of alcohol kicks in."

But we have been told for years that caffeine does not keep alcohol from "kicking in."

Since these mixes are so popular with everyone it makes the study pretty shaky. Sounds more like a doctor with a moral agenda.

[rf35]

I find the title of the article misleading...not all that uncommon for CBS, unfortunately. Anyway, it appears that the only thing dangerous about this combination is if you drink excessively with the sole intent of getting as drunk as possible. Used in moderation, these drinks aren''t much different than any other alcoholic beverage. When the report talked about the delayed reaction to the alcohol, it wasn''t clear on whether or not it also takes longer to metabolize the alcohol. If it does, that would mean waiting longer before being safe to drive. Other than that, a person drinking a "normal" amount shouldn''t have any problems. "Everything in moderation."

rv_man666 it states you can''t handle pressure and will never be able to work under pressure, so sweeping floor is probably all you will be able to handle, because flipping burgers can get hectic if you''re getting swamped. What a loser you are.....

rv_man666, with a name like that and a post like that...the only job you''ll ever have is cleaning floors or flipping burgers. Need energy drinks and alcohol to get through classes means you are a worthless student if you need stimulants to learn. YOU ARE A MORON to top all morons.

[rv_man666]

Duuuuddeee.. I love drinking RVs and jager bombs at 10:30 AM... It helps me get thru my classes. I am drinking a jager bomb right now!

Just like my generation in the seventies, we tried just about anything to catch a buzz and stay up longer. White Crosses (high caffine tablets) was the drug of choice back then. Then I started losing my friends and realized "WHAT A STUPID KID I WAS" The health issues alone, heart attacks with no history of heart disease and so on.....it''s not worth it. If someone says you''re chicken or won''t be part of their crowd, then smile and say...okay, in a couple of years I''ll be on my lunch break and you''ll be saying, "Will there be fries with that?"

[williamfold]

Redbull + Yagermister = a Yagerbomb = unemployment solution. LOL

Redbull + Yagermister = STUPIDITY

[ymaguoc]

Yagerbombs are awesome!

P.S. I don''t drink mixed drinks in order to "stay awake longer" like this study suggests.

[ianlou]

Redbull + Yagermister = a Yagerbomb