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FDA To Review Inhalable Caffeine
First time accepted submitter RenderSeven writes "Manufacturing.net reports that U.S. Food and Drug Administration officials plan to investigate whether inhalable caffeine sold in lipstick-sized canisters is safe for consumers and if its manufacturer was right to brand it as a dietary supplement. AeroShot went on the market late last month in Massachusetts and New York, and it's also available in France. Consumers put one end of the canister in their mouths and breathe in, releasing a fine powder that dissolves almost instantly."
Instant jitters and an easy way to dose higher than you'd expect.
~S
Next thing you know, they'll be snorting coke!
Let's call it what it is, Anti-Social Media.
If only Tony Montana could have found a legal subsitute for his miami business... -"Have you guys seen my straw?"
I give it 5 months before some stupid kid dies chain huffing these until his heart goes.
Next you'll break open the canisters to get at the powder and snort line of Caffeine.
Life takes interesting turns, but the most interest is when you're off the beaten path.
Bottom line here: Don't trust the FDA when it comes to food safety. It may be their responsibility to ensure food is safe, but they're so horribly underfunded and compromised by corporate interests that they cannot realistically be expected to succeed.
#fuckbeta #iamslashdot #dicemustdie
The average soft drink contains something like 2 oz of sugar. This pseudo-cocaine...er....inhalable caffeine seems like a great solution for nerds. Now we can stay up all night, without the sugar (and without whatever flavored toxic waste they use in sugar-free drinks).
So Microsoft is now trying to mess up the food busyness as well?
-- no sig today
It's not "inhaled." You puff the powder into your mouth, it dissolves in the saliva in your mouth, then you essentially swallow the saliva+caffeine and it's absorbed in your digestive system. No better or faster than any other caffeine that you swallow, and I guarantee a bottle of Vivarin is going to cost a HELL of a lot less than this gimmick.
had to read that three times until I realized that this Manufacturing.net is a website and has nothing to do with .NET reporting
The fda needs to stop trying to take things off the market when there has been no harm to the consumer. If there's a case that the product has hurt consumers, it's one thing. But there's no such thing in this case, or the last three that they've done this with.
This signature has Super Cow Powers
Wait, so I wasn't supposed to be railing those pills? What the hell are they for then?
Saw this on Wired a few weeks ago. Looks dangerous indeed. I prefer my caffeine in liquid or solid, not gaseous, form, TYVM.
(Yes, I'm aware that an inhalant powder is technically solid; don't get pendantic).
But Maaa! Everyone else has a
The FDA checking the safety of a Food/Drug for general public consumption.
Just because it is legal elsewhere it doesn't mean it is safe for public consumption.
When the FDA lets a dangerous food and drug go free, they will get people yelling at them for not doing their job.
If the FDA bans a food or drug that isn't as dangerous, it is the strong arm of the mighty big brother keeping us poor folk who use this stuff as a cheap replacement for a 50' Boat, and 3 Vacation homes, from having any joy in our lives at all.
If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
... flag this as "TFA is popover-css-block-infested"?
I wonder how long it will be before they are behind the counter and you have to show your id to buy it.
Just how bad can it be to drink a nice coffee?
Another retarded Slashdot story.
Anybody care for a popper?
-- Ethanol-fueled
Inhaling your food, but this is ridiculous! Garcon, I'd to huff a nice Columbian Supremo, please!
Don't forget "tastes like crap" as a feature...nasty.
I've heard of teens putting vodka in vaporizers for faster highs. Its rather corrosive to sinus tissues.
It seems the natural outcome of this would be giant fire-extinguisher sized containers in each corner of the building regularly spritzing caffeine into the air to generally improve employee output. You could even hide the canister behind ceiling tiles. Just another service provided by your company.
Oliver's law of assumed responsibility: If you're seen fixing it, you will be blamed for breaking it.
Inhaling powder? Rarely a good idea- common sense says it can't be good for the lungs.
Also, I think many people over-estimate how much caffeine really does for them. There have been studies that show that people get more of a "caffeine high" if they are given a decaf and told it has caffeine in it- than they are if they are given a caffinated coffee and told it is decaf.
Sure, caffeine does help- and does things to the brain; but 50% of the effect of caffeine is pure placebo effect.
"That's the way to do it" - Punch
I wish I could find a clip of "Kif" from Futurama sighing in response to your comment.
What's next, snorting No-Doz?
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"...and paid them enough money to brand it as a dietary supplement."
FTFY
It's the AMERICAN WAY!
So is snorting caffeine, apparently.
if we wanted inhalable instantaneous stimulants, cocaine has been around a long time. but if we legalized cocaine that might allow for new markets and businesses to operate where historically monopolies have presided unchallenged.
but if we want inhalable caffeine, thats okay, because the monopoly powers in place have developed tested and stand poised to maket the product accordingly.
and if you dont believe me, check out the wiki article on Stevia, because this is exactly how this works.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevia
first there was sugar, then came aspartame as an alternative, then stevia manufacturers wanted a piece of the market, afterwards the FDA was basically handed an anonymous document from major industry members that implied stevia was a horrorshow poison, which in turn killed off market competition from stevia producers by effectively making the US the only country to outlaw stevia as a food additive. 25 years later both coca cola and pepsi offer versions of their product sweetened with stevia (cokes product is called rebiana.)
me personally? ill keep my cup of coffee black, fresh ground, free trade, organic and locally owned.
Good people go to bed earlier.
Good news for those with IBS that still want a caffeine hit
We could all learn from this company. Take an existing product, put it in a new container, make it look "sexy" and sell it at an exorbitant price. Every time I see something like this, it's obvious that its a useless gimmick and I dismiss it, because of course everyone else will see through it as well. And nearly every time, I'm wrong. Another one in the insanely-expensive caffeine area is "Five Hour Energy." Just another horribly overpriced caffeinated liquid that provides the user with exactly the same drug as a pill that you can get for 1/200th the cost. WHY would anyone ever buy this? So what's next? Where can I score millions from stupid people? How about a little spring loaded canister with mini cookies that ejects one into your mouth with the push of a button? Bingo. Now I can sell $.10 worth of cookies for $3!
From TFA:
Will the powder go into my lungs?
AeroShot does not enter the lungs due to the large size of the particles that make up AeroShot’s powder. The powder in AeroShot reaches your mouth where it is swallowed and ingested.
Does caffeine absorb into my bloodstream with this product differently than it does from a standard energy drink?
Clinical studies have shown that caffeine absorbs into the bloodstream at the same rate via the AeroShot as it does following the drinking of a popular energy drink. If there is a speed benefit to the AeroShot it is in its portability and the quickness with which you can pull it out of your pocket and puff it into your mouth.
Nothing to see here, move along.
I got a free sample of one of these in the mail, they're from the company that makes Le Whiff "breathable chocolate". They work, but it's a horribly planned product. The experience is equivalent to inhaling pixie stix but it tastes a lot worse. You put the product in your mouth and instead of the logical idea of putting the hole that the power comes out of directly on top of the product (facing the back of your throat) so when you inhale it goes directly down your throat, the holes are on the sides facing the roof of your mouth and your tongue; so when you inhale your tongue and the roof of your mouth get coated in this nasty powder (mine was lime flavored) and the taste lingers for about a good 10-15 minutes.You have to insert the product far in your mouth (about 90% of it in your mouth) to avoid the nasty coating and for it to properly go down your throat. The product only contains about 3-5 doses, so overdoses are highly unlikely. I doubt these things contain more than 50mg of caffeine per dose, so even if you emptied the whole container and snorted it, it'd be equivalent to a large energy drink or a strong cup of coffee. I tried to crack one open and it isn't an easy task, they're made out of very tough plastic.
cocaine ld50 in rabbits: 15 mg/kg
I have known people to ingest 1.2-1.4g of caffeine. They felt awful, but didn't even throw up. That much coke would endanger the life of someone not highly habituated.
In amounts the equivalent of say, snorting a line of cocaine, you would cause *serious damage. What's to keep your average marker-sniffing high school student from cracking these open and going to town (and then to the hospital)?
An 'average' line of coke is 50-100mg. That's a cup of coffee (a small one at Starbuck's; their large drip has ~300).
They probably should be reviewing things. And recommending warning labels and so on when they feel that might be helpful. But they should lay the f**k of banning stuff. That bugs me.
Just like the guy that stayed up for four days using the caffeine "energy shots", I'll see you in my ER. Then I'll mutter 'what a dumbass' as I'm wheeling you to the morgue. Been there, seen it too many times, have realized it will never end. Spice, Jimson weed, random pills, cough syrup, etc. The FDA will never make it stop, but they might prevent a couple of kids from making a fatal mistake.
Inhalable caffeine - The new gateway drug!
Coffee shop patrons doing lines of caffeine (or smoking it) - think of the possibilities...;)
Put it in a cigarette, and call it a day.