A buzz might not be the only thing students are catching from beer pong.
Beer Pong is arguably the most popular drinking game at universities nationwide. It is normally played on a table with 10 cups racked in a triangle at both ends. The basic objective of the game is to shoot a ping pong ball into the opponent's cups. When one team eliminates all the opposition's cups, they win.
Although many students play the game as a means to drink, they are swallowing more than they bargain for. Sharing cups with a partner can transmit common flu-like viruses, mononucleosis and even herpes simplex virus (commonly known as cold sores).
Ryan McFadyen, a senior in exercise science, had mono his junior year at Ohio State.
"I felt pretty inexplicably run down for a couple of months before I found out that I had mono, and I'm certain that I played beer pong during that time frame. I was in a serious relationship at the time, and beer pong was the only place that I could have contracted mono in the first place," McFadyen said. "I'm pretty confident that I contracted it while playing beer pong, and that I probably spread it to others in the same manner."
Mononucleosis, also known as the "kissing disease," is characterized by swollen lymph glands and chronic fatigue. It is spread through infected saliva, which beer pong partners indirectly share in nearly every game.
"The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) may cause infectious mononucleosis in adolescents and young adults. But even after the symptoms of infectious mononucleosis are gone, the EBV will remain dormant in the throat and blood cells of that person their whole life," said Kurt B. Stevenson, associate professor of internal medicine at OSU.
If a player knows he or she is sick or has recently been sick, that player should use a personal cup separate from the game cups. This way, the transmission of saliva will not affect others.
"I started to feel better and was pretty sure that I was not contagious anymore. When it was my turn to drink from the cups that were in play, I would pour the beer from those cups in to my personal cup and drink from that, hoping that this would prevent any infected saliva from touching any of the balls, cups or beer," Mcfadyen said.
Herpes Simplex Virus-1 (HSV-1) is most commonly prevalent above the waist, most often in the form of "cold sores" or "fever blisters," according to OSU Student Health Services. A person can get HSV-1 by coming into contact with the saliva of an infected person. Therefore, the risk may be just as high as getting mono or the common cold.
Playing with water in the cups instead of beer, and having a personal beer on the side, is a much safer way to play. This way players won't take the chance of sharing saliva with their partner, or picking up bacteria from the ball.
And while the possibility of disease is a concern to the students, it doesn't seem to stop them from playing beer pong.
"Catching any of those things from beer pong is a definite concern of mine," McFadyen said. "Cold sores are pretty unsightly. But I've always known the risks involved, so that concern isn't going to affect my decision to play or not."
Man I love this game and I never really thought about the consequences, yeah I never shared cups but I didnt think about the water to wash off the ball (that is in the video) Scratch one more game I won't play anymore...
I know some of my friends parents still play....your never too old..
No, but the 4'x8' custom painted piece of plywood that we used as the table was left at the house (for future residents, as it was left for us). That, and my liver isn't in "mid-season form" like it used to be.
The funny thing is that most players are underaged in the first place, and they're all like, "This is how you should play!" That's a pretty weak official stance.
No, but the 4'x8' custom painted piece of plywood that we used as the table was left at the house (for future residents, as it was left for us). That, and my liver isn't in "mid-season form" like it used to be.
HAHAHAHAH had you have to be sober in order to do your article posting
The funny thing is that most players are underaged in the first place, and they're all like, "This is how you should play!" That's a pretty weak official stance.
The funny thing is that most players are underaged in the first place, and they're all like, "This is how you should play!" That's a pretty weak official stance.
Played beer pong for the first time when I was 14! Had no idea of any rules...
No, but the 4'x8' custom painted piece of plywood that we used as the table was left at the house (for future residents, as it was left for us). That, and my liver isn't in "mid-season form" like it used to be.
mine is a custom painted ping pong table that i bought off an ex girlfriends dad, havent played on it in awhile though, its being refinished, its painted white so people can write on it with sharpies so we can remember hillarious stuff that happened while we were partying, but over time, people who i didnt know or like have written a bunch of stupid things on the table, so ive made a record of all the good stuff and am repainting the table and will put all the good quotes back on when im done
Played beer pong for the first time when I was 14! Had no idea of any rules...
its no biggie to not know the rules because it seems like everywhere i play, they all have different rules anyways, i, for one, cannot stand it when people lean halfway across the table to shoot, at that point you can pretty much drop it in the cup, but it always makes people look terrible when they play at my place and house rules are in effect!
no explosions, only 2 re-racks, house rules, visitor rules. GOD DANG JUST PLAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!
haha i just play how im told, i dont argue with people, especially when theyre drunk, only causes problems, i always make sure to ask and be clear on the rules before we start just so i dont make a mistake and piss someone off
haha i just play how im told, i dont argue with people, especially when theyre drunk, only causes problems, i always make sure to ask and be clear on the rules before we start just so i dont make a mistake and piss someone off
whats an explosion?
a explosion is when you get the ball in the cup and all the cups touching the cup with the ball are the ones you drink too
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Beer Pong = herpes, mono, and the flu!?!?!
i don't even know what mono is but 
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