College Students Develop Nail Polish That Can Detect Date-Rape Drugs

I'm sure many of you ladies can relate to being an undergraduate in college (or just a young woman in any bar, for that matter) and keeping an eagle-eye on your drink for fear that some jackass would-be rapist might try to spike it with GHB, Rohypnol, and other drugs.

I am lucky to have never been the victim of date rape drugs, but I know plenty of women, including close friends of mine, who have.  And even if the horrible excuse for a human who spiked your drink doesn't get a chance to get you alone and actually rape you, these drugs are dangerous--sometimes even fatal--and can leave you sick and incapacitated for hours.  Back in college, one of my best guy friends was knocked out cold out after drinking from his female friend's jungle juice at a frat party.  

Well now there may be a solution on the market soon.  Four college students at North Carolina State University are in the process of creating a clear nail polish that will change colors if the wearer dips her fingernails into a potentially spiked drink.  All the students working on the project are boys, and all have said that they personally knew someone who was a victim of being roofied.  

As they said in a statement: “Through this nail polish and similar technologies, we hope to make potential perpetrators afraid to spike a woman’s drink because there’s now a risk that they can get caught,” the page continues. “In effect, we want to shift the fear from the victims to the perpetrators. We are Undercover Colors and we are the first fashion company empowering women to prevent sexual assault.”

The nail polish is called "Undercover Colors" and the students hope that it will empower women everywhere to feel safer in bars, clubs, and parties.  The sad truth is that even if you keep your drink in hand the whole night, there are plenty of shady bartenders and servers out there who can spike it from the get-go, and this new technology will be able to nab them as well.  Simply by stirring your drink with your finger, you can see if it's safe, and quite possibly trace back to the responsible party.  

Also, this polish goes on clear, so if you are not of the nail-polish-wearing persuasion, you can apply it as discreetly as it works.  And if you do like to doll up your nails, just leave one finger clear to test your drinks. I hope these boys get the funding they need to make this vision a reality, and that the bottles of polish become as ubiquitous and free as condoms in the health clinic.  

Drinking in a bar with less fear?  I'll cheers to that.