These Teen Girls Invented A Straw To Test Your Drink For Common Date Rape Drugs

A group of high school girls are trying to make it easier for people to protect themselves from having their drinks spiked with date-rape drugs. They want to make Smart Straws that will test the drinks on the spot.

Susana Cappello, Carolina Baigorri and Victoria Roca of Gulliver Preparatory High School in Miami won the Miami Herald's Business Plan Challenge with their invention last month. The straws would test for GBH and ketamine, two of the most commonly used drugs used to intoxicate victims.

"Rapes assisted by drugs or alcohol are all too common," Cappello told A Plus. "We just want to give any gender a simple tool to protect themselves."

As part of their project, the students conducted a survey at Northwestern University and found that half of the respondents said they knew someone who had been drugged at a party and 85% said they would use the product. They are in touch with a testing kit manufacturer to figure out how to make the straw, which they want to be recyclable. They plan to begin a crowd-funding campaign to kickstart the process.

"We might have to change the name to Safety Straw sinceMcDonald's came out with a 'smart straw' last month that is good for drinking shakes," Cappello said to A Plus.

The concept sounds so good, you may wonder why it hasn't been made before. In fact, in 2013 a company called DrinkSavvy made headlines when it announced attempts to make straws and cups that would test for date rape drugs. The company's website says that "we are still developing our product for commercial release and will have them available ASAP!" Then there was the brilliant idea to make a drug-testing nail polish, which Animal New York pointed out might have some problems.

The biggest drawback of this product? That it only tests for two drugs, when there are many others that can be used in a drink to alter a woman's consciousness or judgment. The Smart Straw team understands they haven't invented the perfect product.

"We know it’s not a solution because it can’t end rape," Baigorri told Inside Edition, "but we were hoping to lower the amount of rape and dangerous situations you might be in through drugs."

Clearly, these budding entrepreneurs have their work cut out for them!