Red Bull and Vodka

In a previous blog I used the example of drinking Red Bull and Vodka to show the short term effects of drinking.  Red Bull and Vodka is a very popular drink choice nowadays among many others such as Monster and Jagermeister.   The combination of an energy drink and alcohol is appealing because it allows you to remain awake and alert instead of drowsy, which is a side effect of alcohol.  What people don’t realize is that mixing an energy drink with alcohol can be dangerous in many ways.

The reason itself for mixing energy drinks and alcohol is said to be unsafe.  According to the College Alcohol Abuse Prevention Center, fatigue is the body’s way of saying it has had enough.  The energy drink pushes your body to its limits by masking the fatigue, but it is still present.  The alcohol will still have the same effects even though the energy drink makes you feel better or less impaired.  The energy drink itself has certain effects on your body like increased heart rate and blood pressure which causes heart palpitations.  When alcohol is added to this these effects increase further which causes more heart problems. 

A new drink has been on the rise which mixes alcohol and energy into one can.  There are multiple companies who make such a combination, but the most well known and criticized is the company responsible for Four Loko.  This drink contains the alcohol equivalent to five beers or 12% alcohol by volume.  There has been a major debate on whether this product is safe enough to keep on the market and many families have sued the company Phusion Projects claiming that Four Loko lead to the death of their child. 

No matter what form it comes in, the combination of an energy drink and alcohol has been shown to greatly affect the body more than drinking the ingredients individually.  These drinks should be handled with caution and not consumed too often.