Vodka Tampons? Reported Alcohol Abuse Among Teens Also Includes 'Butt Chugging'

The Huffington Post Canada   First Posted: 11/14/11 02:09 PM ET Updated: 11/14/11 10:58 PM ET

It would appear that nobody wants to use their mouth anymore to get drunk.

Much to their parents' dismay, teens have long been known to secretly consume alcohol, and the latest method reportedly has them doing so with tampons and bongs.

"[It's a] quicker high, they think it's going to last longer, it's more intense," Dr. Dan Quan from Maricopa Medical Center in Phoenix told KPHO News.

Vodka tampons are exactly what they sound like. Teens supposedly soak a tampon in alcohol and consume it by either taking as shots or inserting the tampons in their rectums or vaginas, KPHO reported. This way, alcohol is absorbed directly into the bloodstream through the membrane walls. In fact, Dr. Lisa Masterson, co-host of "The Doctors," says this method will "literally destroy the vagina."

Accounts of soaking tampons in alcohol have circulated for years and some believe the practice may be nothing more than an urban myth. According to the International Business Times:

Skeptics are questioning the legitimacy of claims that teenagers are using unpleasant-sounding methods of getting drunk faster -- largely because the Legend of the Vodka Tampon is a more than a decade old, and because news stories on the topic have not cited any firsthand accounts of the phenomenon at work.

UPDATE: Other sites have called KPHO's story into question, saying the practice remains unverified despite multiple reports of incidents in the U.S. and elsewhere. One blogger conducted her own informal trial to see whether the purported method worked, with unfavourable results.

But KPHO News reports there have been some cases of alcohol poisoning after utilizing these methods. In addition to using tampons, the broadcast also stated that teens are taking part in "butt chugging" where alcohol is consumed rectally with a beer bong or beer funnel. "Butt chugging" seems to be done to avoid having alcohol breath.

These reports, however, are nothing new. Last month, we told you about another emerging case that had teens soaking candy, specifically gummy bears and worms, into vodka and consuming them.

And it doesn't stop there. In 2010, "vodka eyeballing" was a growing trend among British university students, the Daily Mail reported. Some even posted videos on YouTube demonstrating the process. Vodka snorting was another alternative consumption method bar owners were seeing among university students in the U.K., according to BBC News.

"People were 'in tears' after trying [vodka snorting] while others reacted so quickly they were seen falling to the floor as a result of snorting the alcohol," bar owners told BBC News.

Speaking with teens in a honest and respectful matter is a productive way to broach the topic, substance abuse counsellor and Huffington Post blogger Carole Bennett says.

As parents, communication is key to not only to help your child but not to be fooled yourself. "Just keep your 'poop detector' up as you don't want to be played for a chump if they use your good nature and open heart as a ploy in getting a pass for more reckless or out of control behaviour," Bennett says.

Andrew Murie, CEO of MADD Canada, gives us his tips on talking to kids about alcohol.

Loading Slideshow...
  • Talk About The Issues

    If you had alcohol or drugs in your past, you may want to consider telling your kids about it, Murie says. A 2008 survey of more than 6,000 American teenagers found that they were <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/parenting/teens/alcohol-and-drug-use/you-did-drugs-what-do-you-tell-your-kids-when-they-ask/article2216392/" target="_hplink">50 per cent less likely to use drugs</a> if they had "learned a lot" about them from their parents.

  • Be The Role Model

    "It starts with the parents themselves and their own consumption of drinking alcohol. It's the kind of mentoring they are showing," Murie says.

  • Don't Be Permissive

    "It's unacceptable to allow kids to consume alcohol in front of you," Murie says. Parents need to work with their kids to control alcohol use -- especially alcohol abuse involving young people.

  • Be Prepared

    Parents should always be accessible to their children, Murie says. "Work with your teens to give them alternatives if they do get into a [uncomfortable] situation. They need a phone or a prepaid taxi cab card if possible," he says.

  • Understand The Risks And Take Control

    Even if a party isn't happening at your home, parents should still be able to take control, Murie says. "[It's about understanding the risks and [the fact] that alcohol is alcohol. One shot or glass of wine, it doesn't matter." Murie also says that if your kids do attend a house party, parents should call the host parent beforehand to find out if alcohol will be in the household -- especially if kids are underage.

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It would appear that nobody wants to use their mouth anymore to get drunk. Much to their parents' dismay, teens have long been known to secretly consume alcohol, and the latest method reportedly h...
It would appear that nobody wants to use their mouth anymore to get drunk. Much to their parents' dismay, teens have long been known to secretly consume alcohol, and the latest method reportedly h...
 
 
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Richard Mayne
10:22 PM on 09/25/2012
A shot of vodka in your vagina would surely be painful? The high alcohol content has got the have a burning sensation surely? Oh well - if a person is so stupid as to insert a tampon with vodka into their bodies then they deserve whatever happens? Society used to be set up with rules and expectations for the 'common man/person' test. What would be considered reasonable however now it seems that we are set up to accommodate the stupidest person imaginable...
02:04 PM on 07/29/2012
What kind of results are all these idiotic "news" sites hoping to get by publishing this ridiculous story (*Again!*)?
A new generation of morons (just as dumb as we all used to be), who never would have heard about it otherwise, are going to end up trying it and probably hurt themselves in the process.
Just for once, I'd *LOVE* to see just *one* media outlet release a piece about all the other gullible news sites running a blatantly unresearched bit of scaremongering bullshtt, and condemning their irresponsible behaviour...
An unrealistic dream I know, but I still can't help hoping.
--Stix
02:08 AM on 05/27/2012
Snopes thinks it's false.
10:49 PM on 05/23/2012
Oh, so THAT'S why the girl hosting the party at her place last weekend said "Where do you want it?" when I asked her to bring me a shot of vodka !!
12:03 PM on 05/07/2012
Anyone going to comment on the news reporting? They sound so condescending and offended, its hilarious!
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
carmenalex
STR8 AGAINST H8
02:57 PM on 03/26/2012
People, all this is fake, it's just an Urban Legend.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
bymeili
Give it your best shot
03:40 PM on 10/22/2012
Actually it is not a myth. I know of one person who, because he could not take anything by mouth, had his wife pour vodka into his rectum. The alcohol absorbs directly into the blood stream. That man died from an alcohol overdose.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
carmenalex
STR8 AGAINST H8
08:50 AM on 03/02/2012
"People were 'in tears' after trying vodka snorting". Anyone who is dumb enough to snort liquor deserves what they get. Personal experience, I was at a party and was given a HUGE shot of Jack Daniels by a friend of a friend. Not wanting to offend them I went ahead and slammed it. No problem, except half way down someone bumped me from behind causing me to catch my breath and cough. Not a big problem except for the Jack Daniels which came out my nose. That's a unique pain.
12:40 AM on 03/02/2012
"Butt chugging" seems to be done to avoid having alcohol breath. "
do you understand how a breathlyzer works? alcohol can penetrate the aveoli and becomes volatile so it can be exhaled. it has nothing to do with how you consume it, it ends up in the blood and then the lungs. doesn't anyone know anything about science?
04:43 PM on 05/31/2012
"Doesn't anyone know anything about science?"
No.
HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Darlene1964
09:57 AM on 08/08/2012
I think the teens are more concerned with parents finding alcohol on their breath
08:40 PM on 08/13/2012
No matter which orifice the booze goes in, it still comes out on the breath. Did you actually read the comments you were replying to?
--Stix
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
BowlingForRevenge
~ rabid yellow dog dem tiger mom & proud of it ~
07:20 PM on 02/29/2012
This video has been on the web for months.
Thanks for the speedy reporting HP.
05:57 PM on 02/29/2012
I suppose if they were really sophisticated they'd shove an olive up there first sprinkled with some dry vermouth .
but watch out for the toothpick
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
BowlingForRevenge
~ rabid yellow dog dem tiger mom & proud of it ~
07:12 PM on 02/29/2012
I did not want to laugh but for all it's absurdity I did :D
10:44 PM on 05/23/2012
Good one!
05:54 PM on 02/29/2012
Butt chugging is nothing new , and in the old days was done with champagne , butt or vagina,
that was the reason Fatty Arbuckle was inserting a champagne bottle up Virginia Rapp's uterus .
11:27 AM on 02/29/2012
Darwinism at its finest. Destroys the vagina, thus relieving them of breeding more stupid people. I like that. Who needs eugenics when 'butt chugging' does just fine.
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HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
cinemaven
Follow me on Twitter :)
11:22 PM on 02/25/2012
The gummie bear girls were 19 yr. old students (Canadian university students so they are legal drinking age) who put up a funny YouTube video. It was a joke... it also doesn't work because the tummies just get wet.

The other stuff is pure fabrication that's dragged out for news sweeps weeks like the bracelets that supposedly showed how many partners 12 yr. Olds have had.

It's sad that anyone would be reporting this stuff since it's repeatedly been proven to be made up.
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
John Hazelton Smith
Don't get caught...
07:56 AM on 02/12/2012
what happened to just raiding your parents liquor cabinet on a saturday night?
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HUFFPOST COMMUNITY MODERATOR
cinemaven
Follow me on Twitter :)
11:29 PM on 02/25/2012
My poor sons were afraid to do that because I told them early that I mark all the bottles in secret ways and that because water is lighter than alcohol, it floats on top of the booze so parents can tell you've put water in it.

My kids hated that I had such a misspent youth that I knew all the tricks :)
My son did call BS on me but he was 18 when he did it so I'd gotten him safely through most of his teens.

When I was a kid, we'd take a little from each bottle and meet at the park. Someone would bring frozen OJ and we'd put some in our mouths and drink through it.... No wonder I stopped drinking at 18!
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
JohnSawyer
arglebargy
01:33 AM on 02/11/2012
SIGNS OF THE END TIMES, I TELLS YA
09:21 PM on 04/06/2012
I completely agree it is the end, yes it is!!