WASHINGTON – A new study conducted by the Wake Forest University School of Medicine discovered that college students are likely to drink more alcohol and engage in risky behavior when energy drinks and alcohol are mixed together.
Associate professor of emergency medicine at Wake Forest University, Dr. Mary Claire O’Brien, and a team of researchers organized the Web-based survey consisting of 4,271 college students from 10 universities. Each student was asked 300-plus questions about their alcohol consumption. The results of the study were then reported to at the annual American Public Health Meeting.
Researchers learned that 24 percent of students reported consuming energy drink cocktails in the past 30 days.
The study showed that compared to students who did not mix alcohol with energy drinks, students who mixed their drinks were:
- Twice as likely to be hurt or injured
- Twice as likely to require medical attention
- Twice as likely to drive with an inebriated driver
In addition, students who consumed energy cocktails doubled their chances of taking advantage of another individual sexually, and the risk of being taken advantage of sexually is almost double of those who don’t drink energy cocktails.
In standard drinking settings, these students drank 36 percent more alcohol than other students (5.8 drinks compared to 4.5 drinks), and they also reported twice as many occurrences of drunkenness (1.4 compared to 0.73 days per week).
Students believe the mixing of energy drinks and alcohol reduces the symptoms of drunkenness, but O’Brien says that it is not true. The main ingredient in energy drinks is caffeine, a stimulant. When mixed with alcohol, which is a depressant, O’Brien states the effect is similar to getting into a vehicle and pressing on the gas and brake at the same time, which is very dangerous.
