Anish Vij
University-goers have been warned of the new 'BORG' trend after a number of the University of Massachusetts students were taken to hospital in the US.
Also known as 'blackout rage gallons' - the trend sees students fill up plastic gallon containers with a mix of alcohol, water, and electrolytes.
The theory is to dilute the alcohol so you don't get too drunk before binge-drinking the contents.
However, students are falsely assuming they aren’t drinking a lot, as Borgs typically contain a fifth of alcohol which equates to roughly 16 drinks.
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AP has reported an incident involving the trend recently saw 28 ambulances get called out to an off-campus student party in Amherst, Massachusetts.
“UMass officials said this is the first time the university has observed notable use of borgs,” the University of Massachusetts said in a statement following the incident.
“They will assess this weekend’s developments and consider steps to improve alcohol education and intervention, and communicate with students and families.”
The Amherst Fire Department revealed that thankfully, none of the cases were life-threatening.
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The #borg TikTok trend has accumulated over 80 million views and shows many users pouring in around half of the gallon’s water and filling the rest up with vodka, along with juice or electrolytes.
“It’s essentially a hack to drink a bunch, have a crazy night, and not feel terrible about it the next day,” one TikToker has explained.
“Gen Z just like drinks this.”
Although George F. Koob - the director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism at the National Institutes of Health - issued a warning on Good Morning America.
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He said: “Unless you’re the one that mixed the borg and you know exactly how much alcohol you’re dispensing, it’s probably easy to overdo it.
“The flavorant can mask some of the effects of alcohol and caffeine itself can mask some of the effects of alcohol so sometimes then you don't even know or realize how much you've been drinking.”
Koob added: “Ultimately, no matter how you take it, you're going to get intoxicated and the alcohol is going to have its effects.
“The borgs, it sounds like some well-intentioned efforts to regulate how much people are drinking, but I think you have to be really careful when someone else, they may not be mixing drinks at a bar for you or in the kitchen, but if they're mixing up in effect, a vodka punch, I personally am not sure that there's a whole lot of difference.”
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LADbible has contacted TikTok and the University of Massachusetts for comment.