Prohibit these drinks once and for all

In a popular carnival game, the object is to pound down “moles” that pop up from holes in a platform. No matter how fast a player is with the mallet, the plastic figures return with increasing speed. Some moles have surfaced in recent years in the form of a product that appeals to young people and is deemed unsafe by the FDA. Despite repeated attempts to beat them down, alcoholic energy drinks keep coming back.

The drinks combine alcohol with stimulants like caffeine that can mask the feeling of intoxication, possibly leading to risky behavior. Many users are underage; most are under 30. One maker says a 23-ounce bottle has the alcohol equivalent of five beers and the caffeine of one cup of coffee.

When the drinks appeared about five years ago, they were immediately criticized. The Illinois attorney general joined a 13-state effort that spurred two beverage giants, MillerCoors and Anheuser-Busch, to stop producing them. In 2008, Illinois adopted stricter labeling requirements and limits on marketing that targeted young people. Last year the FDA asked the industry for proof that they were safe. Colleges banned them.

But the moles didn't quit. Smaller companies continued making the drinks, and others introduced their own versions. Sales totaled about $1 billion in 2009, a trade publication reports.

In November, the FDA issued an even stronger message, saying the caffeine added to the beverages is an “unsafe food additive” and warning four manufacturers to remove them from the market.

Chicago-based Phusion Products, maker of the popular Four Loko, has agreed to take the caffeine out of its drinks. The company's website cited “a difficult and politically charged regulatory environment at both the state and federal levels,” and added, “We have repeatedly contended ... that the combination of alcohol and caffeine is safe.”

Tell that to the students at Washington and New Jersey colleges found near comatose after drinking the beverages. Or to researchers who say that bar patrons who drink them are four times more likely to drive upon leaving compared with those who drink alcohol without caffeine.

Banning products that are legal is no light matter, but the government has a responsibility to protect its citizens. If the makers of these products cannot develop a more responsible formula and a marketing approach that is not skewed toward youth, the harm these drinks cause can only be seen to outweigh the right to obtain them.

The attorney general is warning the state's two manufacturers that they could lose their licenses if they don't remove the drinks from store shelves. Both have promised to do so. Does this mean an end to the game? Perhaps. But Illinois would be wise to send a strong message, as have several other states that banned the sale or manufacture of these dangerous products. A proposal to do so in Illinois has passed the state Senate. The House is holding the mallet. Let's see what it can do.