It's no secret that college students are broke. We do just about anything we can to save money (i.e. eating microwaveable noodles for breakfast, lunch and dinner).
For the 21-and-over club, this way of life is also applied to alcohol. Mug nights, cheap beer, and boxed wine are among a few inexpensive favorites of students.
However, inexpensive alcohol may be costing us much more than money.
Kevin Hicks, a former wine distributor, created a company called Beverage Grades. This company is an independent lab that tests beer, wine, and spirits so that you "know what's in your drink." He recently found that several popular wines including Trader Joe's 'Two Buck Chuck', 'Menage a Trois' Moscato and Franzia's 'White Grenache' include arsenic levels up to five times the amount that the Environmental Protection Agency suggests (Almendrala).
Arsenic is a highly toxic poison that can cause very serious health issues and sometimes even leads to death when consumed. It does not have color or smell, so it is difficult to tell if your drink contains arsenic or not.
The federal government heavily regulates arsenic levels in water, but does not do the same extensive regulating in alcohol. This is how some of these manufacturers were able to produce such dangerous products.
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