Should There be an Age Limit on Energy Drinks?

Many teens, myself included, have gotten really used to drinking energy drinks fairly often. But should teens be able to drink them freely? Many people have concerns. The 4 major side effects of energy drinks are anxiety, dehydration, insomnia, and heart complications. Heart complications include irregular heartbeat or even heart failure.

 

In 2011, 1499 teens were rushed to the ER because of an energy drink related emergency. More than 10 percent of these ER visits resulted in those teens being hospitalized. Many energy drink brands target their ads towards kids aged 13-18. As a result, these teens are influenced to drink these. Many schools even have energy drinks in vending machines, giving teens an even easier access to energy drinks. Parents are also uneducated on how risky it is having young children drink these drinks, especially the ones that have sugar in them.

 

So how do energy drink companies defend themselves? Many companies say that a large coffee from Dunkin Donuts has more sugar and caffeine than their drinks. The difference is that energy drinks use artificial sources for caffeine, which have been proven to be more dangerous than natural caffeine sources. Many health research centers have concluded that children should consume no caffeine at all.

 

In my opinion, I think that the age limit for energy drinks should be 16. At that age, many teens are full grown or close to it. The major concern of teens drinking energy drinks is because they are smaller than adults, but many teens, girls especially, are full grown by 16. Also, energy drinks can help teens focus better in school, so they should be able to consume them in moderation.

 

Questions:

Do you drink energy drinks? If so, how often?

Do you think there should be an age limit for energy drinks?

 

Sources:

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2019/06/scientists-say-energy-drinks-ads-shouldnt-target-teens/592657/ 

https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/nutrition/energy.htm 

https://www.unr.edu/nevada-today/news/2020/atp-energy-drinks 

 

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  • I don't drink energy drinks personally, but I do think there should be an age restriction. I don't think kids should be able to drink it at all, so 18 and up. Kids will always sneak things in life, and mostly everyone I know started drinking alcohol at 14. 21-14 is 7 year age difference. So if we make energy drinks at 18, then kids should, on average, would start drinking it at 11. Compared to some kids being 8 and drinking it. 

  • I don't think there should be an age limit on energy drinks. I rarely ever drink an energy drink, and when I do, they do not affect me. If there would end up being an age limit, I would think it should be 13-14 years old. I feel like once you get to around that age you start to learn how to take care of your body and focus on what you are putting in it. 

  • I believe that there should be an age limit on energy drinks. I don't think that kids under 16 should be drinking engergy drinks, because caffine is not good for brains and bodys. I personally don't drink energy drinks, because I don't see the point in drinking so much caffine at one time.

  • In my opinion there should not be an age limit for energy drinks. As long as the kid drinks the right amount and has one every once in awhile they will be fine. If your parents don't want you to drink energy drinks then you wont but if there fine then you should drink them if you want to.

  • I personally don't drink energy drinks. I think that the age limit for energy drinks should be at 16. There are some health risks linked to drinking energy drinks as you mentioned. When you're 16, I think that you are grown-up and aware about the risks, so you can decide if you want to drink it or not. 

  • I don't think that there should be an age limit for energy drinks. To prevent a caffeine overdose in teens, companies could target their demographic more towards adults. Another way to prevent energy drink-related hospital visits would be to maybe change the flavors to make them less enjoyable. By doing so the companies probably wouldn't do so well, but the number of kids in the ER could go down.

  • I personally don't think so, but I do think that younger kids like middle school age shouldn't be drinking them on a regular. I think once you get to around our age you can drink them. But either way they aren't too healthy for you. Which is why I don't usually drink them. 

  • I think their should be a limit on energy drinks. I think it should be between 16-18 years old. Our bodies are still developing as kids and all the artificial stuff they put in there can be very dangerous even if it's long term. You can get energy from other things naturally.

  • Yes i think there should be. This is a good topic btw. I think little kids drinking them is very bad. So they should make it like 16.

  • Personally I don't drink any energy drinks because I really don't like the taste of any of them. I think that the popularization of Monster back in the 2000s really kicked off the normalization of drinking so much caffeine for younger kids, and I don't think that is very good for the health of anyone let alone an underdeveloped child.

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