Starbucks unveiled its first alcoholic coffee drink in the U.S. — a glass of IPA beer topped with a shot of espresso — in October 2016.
In an interview with SELF magazine, Dr. Jennifer Wider, a women’s health expert, said Starbucks is not the first company to serve coffee with alcohol. Irish coffee or Kahlua-based drinks are available at most restaurants.
While the combination of coffee and alcohol is not harmful to drinkers, excessive consumption of the mixture may lead to health problems.
“There is evidence that the combination can impair the drinker’s judgment more than alcohol alone,” said Dr. Jennifer Haythe, an assistant professor of medicine at Columbia University Medical Center.
She added that it can be very dangerous to go overboard when mixing caffeine and alcohol. “The combination can lead to risky behaviors,” she said.
Effects of Caffeinated Alcoholic Drinks Likened to Cocaine
A 2016 Purdue University study revealed that caffeinated alcoholic beverages and cocaine have similar effects on the brains of teenagers.
Researchers observed that when adolescent mice were given caffeinated alcohol, they showed physical and neurochemical signs similar to those observed in mice that were given cocaine. Adolescent mice that were given high-caffeine energy drinks without alcohol were not more likely to drink alcohol as adults.
Richard van Rijn, an assistant professor of medicinal chemistry and molecular pharmacology, noted that the two substances together pushed the adolescent mice over a limit that changed their behavior and brain functioning.
“Their brains have been changed in such a way that they are more likely to abuse natural or pleasurable substances as adults,” van Rihn said.
He added that the teenage mice exposed to caffeinated alcohol were less sensitive to the effects of cocaine as adults, raising concerns that these mice might use more cocaine than a control mouse to achieve the same desirable effects.
FDA Rules Caffeine in Alcoholic Beverages Unsafe
In November 2010, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration deemed that seven caffeinated alcoholic beverages did not meet federal safety standards and cited evidence that they pose a health risk.
“FDA does not find support for the claim that the addition of caffeine to these alcoholic beverages is ‘generally recognized as safe,’ which is the legal standard,” said Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, principal deputy commissioner of the FDA. “To the contrary, there is evidence that the combinations of caffeine and alcohol in these products pose a public health concern.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, young people commonly consume energy drinks. About one-third of teenagers ages 12 to 17 and 34 percent of adults ages 18 to 24 regularly consume the caffeinated beverages.
“When alcoholic beverages are mixed with energy drinks, a popular practice among young people, the caffeine in these drinks can mask the depressant effects of alcohol,” the CDC’s website says.
As a result, people may underestimate how drunk they are. Because caffeine does not affect blood alcohol content or the way the liver metabolizes alcohol, adding it to an alcoholic beverage does not reduce the risk of alcohol-related consequences.
People who drink caffeinated alcoholic beverages are three times more likely to binge drink than those who do not mix alcohol with energy drinks, according to the CDC. Drinkers who combine alcohol and caffeine are also about twice as likely to report incidences of sexual assaults and riding with someone driving under the influence of alcohol.
Caffeine and Alcohol: A Dangerous Combination
Despite the FDA’s opposition to caffeinated alcoholic drinks, bars and restaurants often serve cocktails that mix caffeine and alcohol. These drinks present more risks than the premixed versions because of their widespread popularity, according to Kathleen Miller, a sociologist and researcher at University at Buffalo.
Several studies by Cecile Marczinski, a psychological researcher from Northern Kentucky University, found that people who consumed caffeine and alcohol thought they were less drunk than people who consumed alcohol alone, despite both groups having the same blood alcohol content. She added that caffeine nullifies the feeling of tiredness that makes many people stop drinking.
“Since caffeine lasts for six hours, that extends that time when you feel really stimulated and alert, and that makes you want to drink more,” said Marczinski.
Another study noted that alcohol and caffeine did not need to be mixed in the same glass to have negative effects on the body. Megan Patrick, a sociologist at the University of Michigan, found that students who consumed energy drinks and alcohol on the same day but at different times were at a higher risk of consequences than those who did not have an energy drink.
The study also reported that students consumed 11 percent more alcohol and drank for longer periods on days when they had an energy drink compared to days when they did not.
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