South Carolina lawmakers are considering legislation to allow the sale of high-alcohol beer, but some experts say the potent brews are dangerous because drinkers don't realize how much alcohol they are consuming.

ABC News reported March 28 that the measure would allow South Carolina residents to buy beer with up to 14 percent alcohol; the current law limits beer to 5 percent alcohol content. The bill was recently approved by a Senate committee and also is being weighed in the House.

But Suzanne Thomas of the Medical University of South Carolina said that when consumers "drink a 12 ounce beer that contains 14 percent alcohol, they are drinking the equivalent of of two, or three beers ... They will have a couple drinks, and all of a sudden an accident."

South Carolina retailers say there is a demand for the high-alcohol beer, and that some customers have been crossing state lines to buy the stronger products.