From Fun to Frightening: The Truth About Four Loko

Blackout in a can. Liquid cocaine. The one-sip wonder. Whatever you call it, Four Loko is taking the world by storm, whipping college students everywhere into a hyped-up, falling down, drunk-off-their-asses frenzy. To students without the money or resources to keep a fully stocked liquor cabinet (or even to keep the party going after 11 pm), it seems like a miracle drink: one fizzy can, as fruity and innocuous-tasting as a Fanta, capable of catapulting you into wasted-land within just a few minutes. No more hourly Keystone runs, no more bored guests filing out once you’re out of chasers, no more bothering with cups, even. A whole night of partying, wrapped up in one brightly-colored, oversized can. A gift from God for college kids, right? 

Maybe not. Over the past several months, Four Loko has blown up on college campuses across the country, and along with its newfound popularity has come an increasingly notorious reputation. The alcoholic drink has sent tons of students, many of them underage, over the edge and into the hospital, casting everyone’s new favorite party accessory into a pretty scary light. Four Loko is so new, and has taken over so quickly, that it’s hard to tell what we’re really getting ourselves into when we take a sip. HC is here to blow the lid off this ubiquitous but unsavory new craze—how loko IS Four Loko, really?