A Search for the Brands of Beer Most Likely to Land You in the E.R.

Malt liquor may not be the most popular of beers overall, but it probably won’t surprise you that the high-alcohol beverage has come out on top with drinkers who land in the E.R. According to a new pilot study in Baltimore conducted by researchers at Johns Hopkins, four brands of malt liquors accounted for nearly half of the beer consumption by emergency-room patients, even though the beverage accounts for just 2.4 percent of general beer drinking in the United States.

In the small study of 105 individuals, the top five brands consumed most often were Budweiser, Steel Reserve, Colt 45, Bud Ice, and Bud Light; except for Bud Light, every other brand was significantly overrepresented in the E.R. when compared with its share of the national beer market. (Steel Reserve, Colt 45, and Bud Ice are all malt liquors; King Cobra was the fourth-place malt liquor, but it was not one of the top five overall brands.)