(Image source from: Nytimes.com)
If you've been to a party lately and haven't seen anyone drinking BORG, you're probably not partying with college kids. And if you don't even know what that phrase means, you're probably not part of Generation Z. According to the National Poison Center in Washington, D.C. The acronym BORG stands for “Blackout Rage Gallon”. The term usually refers to a concoction prepared in a gallon-sized plastic jug containing vodka or other distilled alcohol, water, a flavor enhancer, and an electrolyte powder or drink. BORG is often drunk at outdoor parties, known as dirty. Anna Lembke, a professor at Stanford University, says that BORG contains so much alcohol that "drinking it can cause alcohol poisoning and potentially life-threatening poisoning." Sabrina Grimaldi, creator and editor of online lifestyle magazine The Zillennial Zine, says this major drink is a new version of jungle juice. This publication is aimed at the micro-generation between Millennials and Gen Z.
“Huge 5-gallon soda machines, huge storage bins, and even the most whimsical way to make berry juice in the sink or bathtub mean everyone can make their own mixed drinks instead of making party mixed drinks,” Grimaldi wrote. As the name suggests, the drink is said to be “strongly intoxicating.” What Lemke calls BORG’s “social contagion factor” makes it even more dangerous. “Kids see other kids doing it and want to do it themselves,” he says. Here lies another real danger: taking dangerous deviant behavior and normalizing it by sharing it on social media began earlier this year when a 21-year-old intern heard about BORG and explained why BORG is so popular with Generation Z . Grimaldi said, “I graduated college in 2020, so you could say I haven't been a part of the college party scene in almost five years (mainly due to the pandemic). Kelly and I are very similar in age. It’s us.” In short, it’s crazy how these micro-trends show up.
Xiong, a recent graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, first met BORG during his sophomore year. “It was on St. Patrick's Dirty Block and pretty much everyone had their BORG,” he said. “Everyone did their BORG,” Virginia, 18, a junior at a private high school in Tampa, Fla., said at her high school pool parties last year and this year. He said he didn't want his real name protected. Virginia said one of the reasons she was drawn to the Borg was the social aspect. “You should name your BORG and get creative by writing your name with a marker,” he said. BORG posts featuring gallon jugs with funny names like “Captain Borgan,” “Borg and our savior,” “Borgan the Donor,” and “Borgan Wallen” are going viral on TikTok. “Thinking along these lines is part of what makes BORG dangerous for people who use it as a party drink,” Lembke said. Virginia said she was aware of the dangers of drinking BORG. “A lot of people just pour vodka and don’t measure it. “So it can be more dangerous than knowing you’ve had three cans of beer,” he says. “No one really rations how much they drink, even if the person is over 21, the legal drinking age in the United States.” According to the National Institutes of Health, a standard drink in the United States contains 1 to 1.5 ounces of distilled alcohol, 5 ounces of wine, or 12 ounces of beer. According to the NIH, a woman is considered a binge drinker if she drinks four or more standard drinks (or five or more for men) within two hours.
"A BORG often contains about one-fifth (25.6 fluid ounces or 3.2 cups) of vodka or other spirits, which equates to about 17 standard drinks, which is a large amount of alcohol," Lempke said. In fact, it is better not to drink alcohol at all, as recent studies have shown that any amount of alcohol is not good for your health. In 2022, the World Heart Association issued a statement entitled "No alcohol consumption is healthy". Health experts advise moderation. The 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans limit alcohol consumption to no more than 3 ounces per day for women or 4 ounces for men. Lempke recommends not making this a habit. The liver processes about 1 ounce of alcohol per hour, or one standard drink per hour, Lempke said. Depending on the amount of alcohol in the mix, drinking BORG "completely suppresses the metabolic capabilities of the liver," Lempke said. BORGS are usually sweetened with diluents such as electrolyte drinks or water flavor enhancers, making them more dangerous, he said. “It's very tasty and people tend to drink more than just vodka,” he said. "But it doesn't increase the liver's ability to metabolize alcohol better."
