Mixing an energy drink with an alcoholic beverage increases motivation for more alcohol in college students.

BACKGROUND: There has been a dramatic rise in the consumption of alcohol mixed with energy drinks (AmEDs) in social drinkers. It has been suggested that AmED beverages might lead individuals to drink greater quantities of alcohol. This experiment was designed to investigate whether the consumption of AmEDs would alter alcohol priming (i.e., increasing ratings of wanting another drink) compared with alcohol alone. METHODS: Participants (n = 80) of equal gender attended 1 session where they were randomly assigned to receive 1 of 4 doses (0.91 ml/kg vodka, 1.82 ml/kg energy drink, 0.91 ml/kg vodka mixed with 1.82 ml/kg energy drink [AmED], or a placebo beverage). Alcohol-induced priming of the motivation to drink was assessed by self-reported ratings on the Desire for Drug questionnaire. RESULTS: The priming dose of alcohol increased the subjective ratings of "desire" for more alcohol, consistent with previous research that small doses of alcohol can increase the motivation to drink. Furthermore, higher desire ratings over time were observed with AmEDs compared with alcohol alone. Finally, ratings of liking the drink were similar for the alcohol and AmED conditions. CONCLUSIONS: An energy drink may elicit increased alcohol priming. This study provides laboratory evidence that AmED beverages may lead to greater motivation to drink versus the same amount of alcohol consumed alone.

Impulsivity and alcohol consumption in young social drinkers.

Impulsivity may have different facets that contribute to drinking patterns in young people. This research examined how aspects of impulse control, especially the ability to inhibit a response, predicted recent alcohol use patterns in young social drinkers. Participants (N=109) between the ages of 18 and 21 performed a cued go/no-go task that required quick responses to go targets and the inhibition of responses to no-go targets. Participants also completed several questionnaires that assessed drinking habits (TLFB) and self-reported impulsivity (BIS-11). Regression analyses revealed that both the impulsivity questionnaire scores and the inhibitory failures observed on the behavioral task predicted various aspects of recent drinking. However, only the inhibitory failures from the behavioral task, and not the impulsivity questionnaire scores, predicted the highest number of drinks consumed on one occasion during the past month. These findings are consistent with the notion that impulsivity may have different components that may be contributing the drinking patterns, and this research suggests that the inability to withhold a response is a strong predictor of the binge use of alcohol.

Effects of energy drinks mixed with alcohol on information processing, motor coordination and subjective reports of intoxication.

The consumption of alcohol mixed with energy drinks (AmED) has become a popular and controversial practice among young people. Increased rates of impaired driving and injuries have been associated with AmED consumption. The purpose of this study was to examine if the consumption of AmED alters cognitive processing and subjective measures of intoxication compared with the consumption of alcohol alone. Eighteen participants (nine men and nine women) attended four test sessions where they received one of four doses in random order (0.65 g/kg alcohol, 3.57 ml/kg energy drink, AmED, or a placebo beverage). Performance on a psychological refractory period (PRP) task was used to measure dual-task information processing and performance on the Purdue pegboard task was used to measure simple and complex motor coordination following dose administration. In addition, various subjective measures of stimulation, sedation, impairment, and level of intoxication were recorded. The results indicated that alcohol slowed dual-task information processing and impaired simple and complex motor coordination. The coadministration of the energy drink with alcohol did not alter the alcohol-induced impairment on these objective measures. For subjective effects, alcohol increased various ratings indicative of feelings of intoxication. More importantly, coadministration of the energy drink with alcohol reduced perceptions of mental fatigue and enhanced feelings of stimulation compared to alcohol alone. In conclusion, AmED may contribute to a high-risk scenario for a drinker. The mix of behavioral impairment with reduced fatigue and enhanced stimulation may lead AmED consumers to erroneously perceive themselves as better able to function than is actually the case.