Unsurprisingly, TikTok is at it again with its weekly trends that seem to die out as quickly as they appear. Despite the app being on its possible last standing legs, the looming threat of its banning in the U.S. is not enough to cease the trends that persevere among its users, especially if they involve one of society’s favorite poisons – alcohol.
In the past few days, a specific trend involving a dangerously high amount of alcohol has been sparking interest on TikTok, especially among college students at their large college campus parties. Known as the “borgs drinking trend,” the newest popular drink among students involves large plastic gallon containers known as “blackout rage gallons.” In the jugs is a mixture made up of alcohol, water, and electrolytes, and the new borg trend has accumulated over 82 million views. On the tag you’ll find videos depicting students pouring out half the gallons of water and filling the rest with alcohol and electrolytes.
A warning surrounding this dangerous trend hailed from the officials at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, when they announced that its fire department had handled requests for 28 ambulances due to a “significant number of alcohol intoxication cases.” According to the same officials, students were seen carrying the plastic gallon containers, believed to be used to make “borgs.”
The contents of the borgs are also carefully chosen to dilute the alcohol and falsely induce the drinker into assuming they’re not consuming as much alcohol as they thought. The electrolytes are also a way to avoid feeling hungover the next day, while still being able to indulge in the alcohol. In spite of TikTok users’ attempts at avoiding a hangover, Nicole Barr, a direct services coordinator at the University of North Carolina Student Health Center has come forward to explain that a fifth of alcohol — as it is included in the borgs — equates to roughly 16 drinks.
This is not the first time a trend involving alcoholic beverages endangering lives has come out of the social media platform. In October 2022, a trend involving drinking a pint of Taylor Port’s wine also arose, leading to several users suffering from alcohol poisoning. Unlike borgs, this trend did not even involve the use of electrolytes like Liquid I.V. to abate the horrible hangover that arises from the over-consumption of alcoholic beverages.
Despite the imminent danger reported by the consumption of these borgs, the university has confirmed that none of the incidents were life-threatening.