Amid concerns of abuse, powdered alcohol could be banned in Wisconsin before it is even released.
Palcohol is a powder that alcohol molecules are encapsulated in, and when water is added, it turns into an alcoholic drink, said Joseph Glass, a University of Wisconsin professor and expert on alcohol use disorders.
The product will be released this spring, according to the Palcohol website, but Sen. Tim Carpenter, D-Milwaukee, has introduced a bill that calls for a ban on the sale of powdered alcohol in Wisconsin.
Carpenter said he was worried about the possibilities of abuse, citing concerns that people might use large amounts of the alcohol in their drinks and people smuggling the powdered alcohol in their pockets.
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,” Carpenter said.
Glass said a big concern is the risk of accidental overdose. Many people are likely to mix themselves drinks with the powdered alcohol without realizing how much they are taking, he said.
“When you drink a can of beer, you know how much (alcohol) you are getting,” Glass said. “When you mix a powdered drink, you don’t know how much you are mixing.”
Powdered alcohol could also be snorted, Glass said. If the powder was strong enough, there could be a lot of additional risks, he said.
Potential ban on powdered alcohol in Wisconsin, pending federal approval
The Palcohol website lists several uses for powdered alcohol, including the ease of carrying alcohol for outdoors enthusiasts and travelers as well as potential industrial uses. In a statement, the group criticized media coverage as “focused on the perceived negative aspects of powdered alcohol.”
“Granted, irresponsible people can misuse and abuse any legal product, but that is not reason alone to ban it,” the statement said. “There are many benefits to this product, produced in a beverage formulation and an industrial formulation, that should not be overlooked or overshadowed by negative publicity and political controversy.”
Pete Madland, executive director of the Tavern League of Wisconsin, said there is concern that minors could get access to powdered alcohol as it is easier to hide. He said there is worry that in bars, people could slip the powder in others’ drinks unknowingly.
Because powdered alcohol is a new product that has not been researched extensively, Glass said its health effects beyond those of regular alcohol are largely unknown. With the lack of research, he said there could be hidden health risks that would make not regulating the powder risky.
“We don’t know anything about [the powdered alcohol] delivery mechanisms, it is possible that it is absorbed differently in the bloodstream, more quickly and so forth,” Glass said.
