Coming to a park, highway or school near you: Powdered alcohol

The U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) approved a new product Palcohol, powdered alcohol, that can be mixed into a drink or sprinkled on food. Just like powdered soft-drink mixes you dump into a bottle of water to make instant lemonade, buyers will now be able to spike up any beverage.

Seven flavors of the product were approved, including margarita and cosmopolitan.  The company said the product is a solution to the rising cost of liquid alcohol and could become available later this year.

“What’s worse than going to a concert, sporting event, etc. and having to pay $10, $15, $20 for a mixed drink with tax and tip. Are you kidding me?!” a statement from the company initially read. “Take Palcohol into the venue and enjoy a mixed drink for a fraction of the cost.”  The company even suggesting snorting the powder as an alternative use, according to U.K.'s The Independent.

The website later changed its wording and information, according to news service UPI.

“We were caught off guard with the release of some of our labels by the TTB. As a result, people visited this website that we thought was under the radar because we had not made a formal announcement of Palcohol. … Clearly, this site isn’t finished. … More information will be forthcoming," the site said.

California may have seen this day coming as far back as 1978.  Thirty-six years ago the state's tax agency wrote in a provision -- Regulation 2557 -- addressing the taxation of powdered liquor.  This easily-concealed drug of choice may face several tests when it comes to alcoholism treatment pros, public health and safety bodies and, especially, organizations trying to thwart underage drinking.  Also of note:  The TTB approval does not mean the powdered drug has cleared the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
--from examiner.com (see full article)

Scroll down for the replay of the April 13 Sound Health Options show feature with Scott Stevens. Lucy Pireel's "All That's Written" included a feature on Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud called "When alcohol doesn't work for you anymore."  Details on the third literary award for Every Silver Lining Has a Cloud can be found on www.alcohologist.com, plus an interview with Scott Stevens on Health Media Now and one at Christoph Fisher Books.  Mr. Fisher is an acclaimed international historical fiction novelist from the UK.  
 

SAVE THE DATE:  Scott Stevens will be part of the opening night symposium for the REEL Recovery Film Festival San Francisco.