A new product is under fire from New York democratic senator Charles Schumer, who is asking the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) not to approve the powdered alcohol product Palcohol.

Sen. Schumer asserts that Palcohol could easily become “the Kool-Aid of teen binge drinking,” noting that the powdered alcohol can be sprinkled on food, mixed with water, or even snorted. The product could also be very easily concealed or disguised.

The powder could also be absorbed through the gums, which could cause a host of other medical and dental problems. A similar danger exists with smoking, where blood flow inside the gums is adversely affected, inhibiting the body’s ability to naturally deal with oral plaque.

An appeal to the FDA is not without precedent where teen abuse is concerned. Recently the Administration intervened in the matter of fruit-flavored, caffeinated, alcoholic beverages, which appealed to underaged drinkers.
However, Lipsmark, the parent company of Palcohol, claims that not only would Palcohol be incredibly painful to snort (as Sen. Schumer suggests may be tried), but the powder itself will be subject to the same restrictions and guidelines as traditional liquid alcohol.

This is the latest in the ongoing battle to keep harmful substances away from the under-21 crowd. Famously, Camel Cigarette’s print ads featuring “Joe Camel” were very nearly banned in the late ’90s, before the company voluntarily halted the campaign.

President Richard Nixon banned cigarette ads from television in 1970. For decades network broadcasters abided by an informal agreement not to run hard liquor ads on television, given the influential power of the medium over young minds.

Sen. Schumer’s appeal to the FDA is in that same spirit.

In April, he federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau gave label approvals to Palcohol. The approvals were later withdrawn, though Palcohol does plan to resubmit.