This New Year's Eve weekend there were plenty of revelers looking to ring in 2011 with an alcohol-themed catalyst and many young people who think they can do so while feeling intoxicated and wide-awake at the same time.

They may also have thought that they could party until dawn without feeling the fatigue brought on by alcohol consumption. In order to do this they engage in the potentally deadly practice of consuming alcohol mixed with energy drinks.

It has been reported that 90 percent of drinkers under 25 consume energy drinks. Additionally, 25 percent of them combine alcohol with energy drinks — and more than 75 percent had done so in the past month.

Young drinkers who consume alcohol mixed with energy drinks report that they feel more alert, more coordinated and generally feel more sober than other drinkers do. These perceptions could not be further from the truth.

Many young people do not understand the serious ramifications of mixing alcohol and energy drinks. The consumption of alcohol, especially when  mixed with energy drinks, has significant implications for increasing the incidents of drunk driving and alcohol related driving deaths. The most well known examples of these problems were recently highlighted by the product "Four Loko," also known as "blackout in a can" or "liquid cocaine."

The University of Florida recently did a study and found that bar patrons who reported consuming energy drinks mixed with alcohol were over four times more likely to drive after drinking due to the perception that they were fit to do so.

The study also found that patrons consuming alcohol mixed with energy drinks were three times more likely to have a blood alcohol content greater than the legal limit than other drinkers.

The study discovered that drinkers of energy drinks mixed with alcohol drank for a longer period of time, consumed more drinks and had higher levels of alcohol intoxication than other drinkers that did not consume energy drinks.

Consuming energy drinks mixed with alcohol may very well reduce the perception of intoxication, and may therefore increase one's confidence in their ability to operate a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.

But mixing alcohol with energy drinks may lead drinkers to underestimate their levels of intoxication and led them to believe that they can consume larger quantities of alcohol which they ultimately do.

Young drinkers, when going out for a night on the town, consume energy drinks in two different ways. Some drinkers consume multiple energy drinks before their night of partying with the intention of warding off fatigue and the depressive effects of alcohol that they will consume later that evening. These drinkers believe they can party longer by reving up their systems with caffeine and other stimulants.

The other group of drinkers consumes energy drinks mixed with alcohol with the expectation that the ingestion of the ingredients found in the energy drinks will allow them to drink more and not feel tired or depressed.

Most young drinkers do not realize the high levels of stimulants found in energy drinks: Doctors have warned of the potential health complications that may result from mixing caffeine with alcohol, including cardiovascular risk, impaired judgment, shortness of breath, dizziness, disorientation and a rapid heart rate.

The risks of driving while intoxicated, getting involved in a drunk driving accident and creating health complications for yourself are greatly increased when you mix alcohol with energy drinks.