Sparks has helped consumers power through their nights of partying, but according to 13 state attorneys general, that doesn't mean it was safe.
Sparks, a product of MillerCoors, was an alcoholic energy drink with an alcohol content of 6 percent. The drink was packaged in cans that resembled a battery.
Thirteen attorneys general, including interim Ohio Attorney General Nancy Rogers, were involved in a settlement with MillerCoors in which it agreed to remove the caffeine, taurine, guarana and ginseng from Sparks by Jan. 10.
It's a multi-state effort with a number of states that think alcoholic energy drinks with caffeine are troublesome
in part because people drinking especially young people do not realize how inebriated they are because they are energized at the same time
said current Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray.
Chris Wolf, owner of the Smiling Skull Saloon, said the bar carried the drink when it first was released.
When it first came out
I saw some girl drink five Sparks. ... It's like shooting amphetamines into your veins
he said.
Darlene Berryman, a nutrition professor at Ohio University, said that although the mix is not completely safe, the combination is nothing new.
At low doses it is not unheard of; rum and coke is the same thing. It's about amount. If there is a lot of caffeine
the alcohol may be metabolized faster and so could have a more immediate effect
Berryman said. But the other aspect is that you may not sense it as well because you have a depressant with a stimulant
so you may not feel the effects of the alcohol like you would normally.
In addition to health concerns, the attorneys general were also critical of how the drink was being marketed.
Any time you are marketing products to college students
some of them are underage and you are going to pick up high school students as well - and (we) sensed that (MillerCoors) didn't care too much about that
and now hopefully they care a little bit more
