TRENTON — Two state Senators today asked college presidents in New Jersey to impose a campus ban on an alcoholic beverage so potent it’s referred to as "blackout in a can," and is what likely sent 23 Ramapo College students to the hospital in September. Sens. Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex) and Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen) wrote letters to presidents of 25...
Cans of several varieties of Four Loko, a fruity energy drink that contains alcohol. TRENTON — Two state Senators today asked college presidents in New Jersey to impose a campus ban on an alcoholic beverage so potent it’s referred to as "blackout in a can," and is what likely sent 23 Ramapo College students to the hospital in September.
Sens. Teresa Ruiz (D-Essex) and Loretta Weinberg (D-Bergen) wrote letters to presidents of 25 colleges and universities across New Jersey to ask that they ban Four Loko, a fruit-flavored, caffeine-infused drink that delivers a quick and overwhelming high.
Nearly two dozen Ramapo College students who drank the beverage at the beginning of the semester were hospitalized for alcohol-related illnesses. Ramapo has since banned Four Loko from campus, and Weinberg and Ruiz, who chair the Senate health and education committees, respectively, asked the other college presidents to follow suit.
"We cannot emphasize enough the danger these drinks pose to our young people,’’ according to the letter from Ruiz and Weinberg. "A single energy drink contains the equivalent of up to four beers and three cups of coffee — an extremely potent combination of depressants and stimulants that can create a deceiving sense of sobriety leading to over-intoxication and blackouts.’’
"We respectfully urge you and your board of trustees to immediately institute a campus-wide ban on all alcoholic energy beverages,’’ the letter states.
State officials in Michigan and Washington have banned the sale of the 23.5-ounce drink, which contains 12 percent alcohol and 135 milligrams of caffeine.
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