"FDA Bans Caffeine In Alcoholic Beverages?"

Originally posted by mnemeth1
Given that the FDA has found caffeine to be an unsafe food additive, you can look for its removal from Mt. Dew and Coke soon.

Mnemeth1, don't you ever get tired of posting over exaggerated sensationalized misleading topics?

www.cnn.com...

But Schumer, in a statement issued to the media, said the FDA will rule that caffeine is an unsafe additive to alcoholic beverages, effectively banning them from the U.S. market.

It's an unsafe additive TO ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES.

It is not just an "unsafe additive" like you claim, and then foolishly joke about removing caffeine in safe products. You can't forget the "to alcoholic beverages" part just to support your misleading view.

I have read several of your topics and you constantly use only the sources which have taken words out of context to support your agenda. When you are confronted about the out of context remarks you always backpedal and blame it on the source and say, "I was just quoting the source". Are you going to do that now?

"Let these rulings serve as a warning to anyone who tried to peddle dangerous and toxic brews to our children. Do it and we will shut you down," Schumer, D-New York, said in the statement.

Alcohol, Red Bull Mix May Lead To Death

With a reputation for mixing well with vodka, the drink that claims to "give you wings" may also be a contributing factor in several alcohol-related deaths.

"A high level of caffeine is a tremendous "upper" or stimulant to the central nervous system, while alcohol is a "downer" or depressant. When high levels of these two are ingested together, the body doesn"t know what to do the two do not cross each other out to become neutral. The net result can be heart failure," Sandretto said.

hs.boisestate.edu...

Mixing powerful stimulants contained in some energy drinks with depressants in alcohol could cause cardiopulmonary or cardiovascular failures, said David Pearson, a researcher in the Human Performance Laboratory.

Florida Teen Dies After Mixing Alcohol and Energy Drinks

A 10th-grade student from Wellington, Fla., died after reportedly drinking alcohol and energy drinks at a party, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported.

Death from Alcohol Based Energy Drinks Spurs Bans

They moved quickly after the news story that showed nine college students from Washington were rushed to the hospital after a night of drinking Four Loko, one of the most popular brands of caffeine based alcoholic beverages.

Mnemeth1, are supporting the sale of drinks that kill people? Do you support the ability for cooperations to market and sell drinks that can kill you on the spot? It sure seems like it...

Originally posted by mnemeth1The actual reason behind the ban has nothing to do with "consumer safety" - and everything to do with keeping alcohol production cartelized.

How did you come up with the reasoning of this "ban"?

I've heard crazy stories about "Four Loko's". Kids in high school are drinking these like kool-aid, and some are dying. Well that's what I've read, I personally have just heard stories about a handful of local kids blacking out, some almost dying and going to the emergency room.

Not sure how true it is, but I believe that more than it having everything to do with keeping alcohol production "cartelized". Kids are dumb, they don't know how to pace themselves when it comes to drinking. They are the WORST at it.

reply to post by thisguyrighthere


I feel your passion for this topic, but I don't think there's a coffee stout anywhere that has a much caffeine as a cup of coffee. Although brewers will use a good amount of strongly brewed coffee or even coffee grounds, it's not nearly the amount to make the caffeine content of 1 cup of drip.

reply to post by WickettheRabbit

As noted in this space this summer, there's an unusual lager beer in this market that contains as much caffeine as a cup of coffee -- 69 milligrams -- called Moonshot, made by New Century Brewing Co. of Hingham, Mass.

Read more: www.post-gazette.com...

Like many coffee beers, Twisted pine uses a cold brewing process, which means the coffee is both much stronger than drip coffee, lower the acid, bitterness and tannins of regular hot drip. They take this strong coffee base and double filter it - then add into the already processed stout beer. Espresso Stout

Labatt's Shok
This is the newest brand of caffeinated beer on the market, and it is a potent brew. Not only does Kick have 60mg of caffeine, it also has a high alcohol content of 6.9% in a smaller 250mL bottle. There are so-called "berry aromas" added as well, making for an unusual flavor that you might not expect in a beer.

Molson's Kick
Molson's entry is a lager, with 55mg of caffeine added. There are no extra flavours added, so you might not even notice any difference between this and a regular beer. Though you will notice the funky aluminum beer bottles that you will get when you order at the local bar. Retail purchases are in traditional glass. Kick has a bit less alcohol than Shok, at a modest 5%.

Anheueser-Busch's BE
This brand name is read "B to the E", where the E stands for Extra. BE is a sweet/tart and berry-flavored brew, that has not only guarana for caffeine but also ginseng. A can of BE will net you 54mg of caffeine and 6.6% alcohol content.

Geez, the more I look the more ridiculous this measure looks. I didnt think that was possible

"Let these rulings serve as a warning to anyone who tried to peddle dangerous and toxic brews to our children. Do it and we will shut you down," Schumer, D-New York, said in the statement.

This is a rather silly statement, considering that nobody is "peddling" these drinks to "our children", unless he means our 21+ yr old children....

Personally, the FDA is probably doing these companies a favor though, as they'd probably have lawsuits eat up a lot of their profits anyhow...

Still, would be curious to see how the legalese would be added to affect drinks mixed at a bar, etc.

reply to post by gift0fpr0phecy


First of all, alcohol is best taken in moderation. I don't see you citing any story where an average sized adult human was killed by one or two of these drinks.

Second of all, as much as I'd hate to defend Mnemeth1, the truth is, it isn't up to the government whether or not I can harm myself in the pursuit of happiness...or it SHOULDN'T be, anyway.

Besides, the argument being made for giving these people more power is pretty ridiculous when you consider they're also the ones knowingly fluoridating the water and allowing RX drugs to be pushed on increasingly dangerous levels.

People need to be responsible for themselves. If I drink a wicked cocktail of uppers and downers and it kills me - well, it's nobody's fault but my own. Why? Because I'm adult human being capable of determining what I put in my own body. Should we protect children? By all means. But, such drinks are illegal for kids ALREADY. If they obtain said drinks, THEN there should be others held accountable. I just can't support any argument that attempts to make a case for some other person or entity being considered reasonably more sound than MYSELF when it comes to determining what I can or can't do to MYSELF.

reply to post by gift0fpr0phecy


I don't care if it's unsafe.

Skydiving is unsafe.

Mountain climbing is unsafe.

Unprotected sex is unsafe.

etc.. etc.. etc..

If we removed all unsafe activity from life, I would shoot myself out of boredom.

You have to do better than "it's unsafe" to justify using violence against people who have harmed no one.

reply to post by thisguyrighthere

From the link I posted.

FDA is issuing Warning Letters to four manufacturers of caffeinated alcoholic beverages. All of these products are alcoholic malt beverages to which caffeine has been directly added as an ingredient. The manufacturers and their products are: ...New Century Brewing Company, LLC, which makes “Moonshot;”

Caffeine is added to Moonshot and is not part of the naturally occurring caffeine content of coffee. This is one of the beverages that was warned.

As for espresso stout...
www.twistedpinebrewing.com...

Big Shot Espresso Stout. A favorite of many coffee-loving beer drinkers, Big Shot Espresso Stout boasts about a shot of espresso in every pint.

A shot of espresso has about half the caffeine as a regular cup of drip.
en.wikipedia.org...

It seems the media is only picking on the caffeine, but there is more to this story. Four Loco also contains Taurine, with known blood thinning properties. Alcohol also has blood thinning properties.

Think about it... you have caffeine increasing your heart rate and blood pressure, alcohol and taurine thinning your blood. Sound like a safe combo to you?

Honestly, if idiots want to kill themselves with vodkas and redbulls, they can go right ahead, and I have no problems with industry selling them it either. In fact, I think there's a huge un-tapped market.... heroin pops, brownies and cookies, scooby snax, etc. Let them have it... when the ill effects of their unbridled drug use become apparent more quickly under such conditions, they will serve as a deterrent to the general populace. This is why places that have legit drugs have less use and abuse.

I'm tired of the government claiming authority over my food and drink. I should be-able to eat what I like, and buy it from wherever I want, without their involvement. Food is life to me, and therefore, it is foolish to desire food that is controlled by single entity or small grouping of entities. Food being freely grown, and traded for at farmers markets should never go away. I'd rather take my chances than have to be forced to be dependent on the government nanny-state. Revolution soon will free us from this tyranny.

reply to post by Cyprex


The stuff could set your nuts on fire for a half hour.

It doesn't matter how dangerous it is.

It doesn't matter how harmful it is.

What matters is that the use of violence against innocent people who have harmed no one is not justified.

What matters is that people have a right to engage in dangerous activity as long as they are not harming anyone else in the process.

What matters is that you do not have a right to tell other people what they can and can not consume.

Why can't both sides be right? Both the FDA and the alcoholic energy drink producers have their own interests at heart; the FDA with all the aforementioned bans other posters referenced, and the alcoholic energy drink producers being very popular [and profitable] among college and high school level populations.

Can't this be a win against a big corp taking advantage of young adults and a finally a good move on the FDA's part, without taking their other interests in mind?

Lest you open the door to a little legislation and surrender choice and selfcontrol,
a whole lot of legislation and external control enter with it.

Originally posted by mnemeth1
I don't care if it's unsafe.

Obviously.... That means you don't care if it kills college students, or your own family members.

Originally posted by mnemeth1
Skydiving is unsafe.

Mountain climbing is unsafe.

Unprotected sex is unsafe.

etc.. etc.. etc..

If we removed all unsafe activity from life, I would shoot myself out of boredom.

This isn't about removing unsafe activities.

This is about removing the sale unsafe products to unsuspecting consumers.

Originally posted by mnemeth1
You have to do better than "it's unsafe" to justify using violence against people who have harmed no one.

Oh please don't start with your over exaggerated definition of violence.

reply to post by gift0fpr0phecy


Unsuspecting consumers

LOL

Because a Jooze can looks like a kiddie cocktail.

Never mind the fact that people will have to show an ID to purchase it.

Saving the world from mentally retarded people is not the job of government.

I am not a retard, therefore the government has no right to manage my consumption habits or who I voluntarily transact with.

Originally posted by gift0fpr0phecy
This is about removing the sale unsafe products to unsuspecting consumers.

Why the hell are they unsuspecting? It says right on the label what's in it. People choose it over other drinks because of the ingredients.

They arent unsuspecting. They're just shocked when the consequences they were told were coming hit them.

As most idiots are.

Car surfing is really cool until you fall off and get crushed. Then it's all "why didnt anyone warm me I was doing something stupid?"

reply to post by Gazrok


The drink is marketed to college students, a.k.a. young adults, which are considered children to some.

I'm glad someone made this parody:

reply to post by mnemeth1


Before you get worked up too much about banning caffeine and alcohol mix may I suggest you spend a little time researching the almost epidemic problem that Scotland is having with this type of drink.

Buckfast is a cheap so called tonic wine made by of all people Monks hit combines high caffeine and alchol and is causing a huge problem in Scotland in relation to violent crime.

reply to post by thisguyrighthere


It doesn't say ANYWHERE on ANY of the beverages that it is harmful to drink high amounts of alcohol with high amounts of caffeine.

When you see it in a store, it looks like just another energy drink... people who know nothing about the effects or dangers will buy it, get killed, and people will ask the FDA why they allowed such a deadly drink to exist...

reply to post by The Djin


Alcoholic energy drinks are not causing a problem in Scotland.

Alcoholics are causing a problem in Scottland.

And the video is pure propaganda to support what the industry cartel wants.