BORG Alert
Last weekend over 30 people were transported to emergency rooms near the University of Massachusetts-Amherst campus due to alcohol overdoses. Most were participants in the annual Barney Blowout which is a campus wide party that ushers in Spring break. Participants travel from other campuses and other states to attend and in the past riot police were needed to control the crowds. The behaviors have improved but binge drinking continues.
Much of the alcohol over-consumption this year was attributed to BORGs: Black Out Rage Gallons. BORGS have been around for a few years and are not specific to U-Mass. Recipes are easily attainable on the Internet as Tik Tok reports more than 76 million views already. BORG fans say they offer safety and control compared to previous binge drinking behaviors. In fact, they offer neither.
Making a BORG is simple: Pour some of the water out of a gallon water jug and replace with alcohol (usually Vodka as it mixes with almost everything). Typical amounts of alcohol in a BORG equal a fifth or the equivalent of 16 drinks. Add some Gatorade and maybe some extra flavoring of your choice and maybe even some caffeine. The idea is that you won’t get as drunk because the electrolytes in the sport drink mix, the water and the caffeine will counteract the effects of the alcohol. But our body doesn’t work that way.
When you add alcohol to your digestive system, some of it is processed through your liver and some of it enters your blood stream. The only place where alcohol is actually broken down into non-harmful chemicals is the liver. A healthy adult liver can process approximately ½ ounce of alcohol per hour. This is the approximate equivalent of one regular size drink (like a 12 ounce bottle of beer). If you are adding more alcohol than this amount to your body, the alcohol level increases. This can be measured by a urine or blood test or a breathalyzer. The Blood Alcohol Level that is often discussed in drug driving arrests is what this measure is called.
There is nothing you can do to improve your liver’s ability to process alcohol. Consistent heavy drinking only compromises this ability.
When you drink a lot of alcohol, your central nervous system triggers your digestive system to increase the amount of fluid it expels. This is why you urinate more when you are drinking heavily. Drinking a lot of water with electrolytes will prevent the uncomfortable effects of dehydration that accompany heavy drinking. But it will not make you less drunk. Your Blood Alcohol Level will remain the same.
Adding caffeine to a BORG is reminiscent of the old idea of giving coffee to someone who has drunk too much to help them “sober up”. When you give caffeine to someone who is drunk, you get a wide awake drunk. It does not make you less drunk. No matter how much caffeine you take in, your Blood Alcohol Level remains the same.
Some events, like music festivals or the Barney Blow Out can go on for many hours. As we become more intoxicated we may not pay attention to eating and if an event proceeds into the evening, we become fatigued. Energy drinks which contain substantial amounts of sugar, can provide an energy boost, but they do not make us less drunk because (all together now) your Blood Alcohol Level remains the same.
Carrying around your own supply of alcohol with a cap on the opening implies a degree of safety: you know what you are drinking and because you are carrying it, no one can pour something (like the date rape drug GhB) into your supply. However, what are the chances of someone carrying around a heavy gallon jug all night without putting it down at least once? Also, if you are drinking enough to black out (the B and O in BORG) how safe are you then?
Even the name is wrong. A black out occurs after repeated bouts of heavy drinking, often after months or sometimes years. It is a memory deficit: the drinker remains functioning but has no memory of their activities the next day. It is one of the indicators of an alcohol addiction. What is actually described in BORG postings is Passing Out. The chemical alcohol is a central nervous system depressant. When your body reaches a high enough blood alcohol level (and it varies for each person), you will lose consciousness. This is called Passing Out. Anyone can pass out if they put enough alcohol into their body quickly enough. It takes much more effort, over a longer period of time to experience black outs. But Blacking Out sounds stronger than Passing Out. Somehow, calling it a PORG doesn’t sound as cool as a BORG.
Thanks to Alina Bradford for background info https://www.safewise.com/what-parents-should-know-about-borg-drinking/