With a single serving of some new high-caffeine energy drinks containing as much caffeine as six Coca-Colas, paediatricians and parents are calling for them to be treated like alcohol and cigarettes, and for sales to be banned to minors.
Prime Energy, launched this year, has 200mg of caffeine within its 350ml can – exceeding permissible caffeine levels in Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Reuters reports that rival products like Anheuser Busch InBev-backed Ghost energy drinks and Kim Kardashian’s Kimade energy drink also have 200mg of caffeine.
Competitor Monster Energy contains 150mg of caffeine.
As caffeine content in energy drinks has climbed over the years, some countries and retailers have banned the products while a few require proof of age for purchase. In America and Britain and South Africa), no national regulations ban the sale of these drinks.
Without legal age mandates like those on alcohol and cigarettes, retailers are unlikely to restrict access, said Dr Holly Benjamin, a professor of paediatrics and orthopaedic surgery at the University of Chicago.
There is no proven safe dose of caffeine for children, according to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
“Retailers could choose to place sports drinks and energy drinks in different locations and label the sections differently; but, I think that is unlikely to happen without regulation, which starts with better product labelling and widespread education,” Benjamin said.
“Any energy drink with a high dose caffeine in it, like Prime Energy, is unsafe for children.”
Side effects for youngsters consuming caffeine could include rapid or irregular heartbeats, headaches, seizures, shaking, stomach upset and adverse emotional effects on mental health.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
New energy drinks pose risks for children, pregnant women
Energy drinks may increase risk of electrical disturbances in the heart
Energy drinks notably diminish blood vessel function in young adults
UK set to ban sale of energy drinks to children
Serious health risks to energy drinks — Harvard study