Labour is considering ideas to prohibit the sale of energy drinks to under-16-year-olds.
Concerns over the effects on children’s health and education have led to consideration of a clampdown.
The beverages may include a significant amount of sugar in addition to high caffeine content. Excessive intake by youngsters has been linked in studies to headaches, insomnia, irritability, and fatigue.
Evidence suggests that youngsters who consume these drinks regularly may do poorly academically and behave badly. Additionally, research released last month revealed that they can raise the likelihood of stress, worry, and suicide ideation.
Up to a third of children in the UK consume caffeinated energy drinks every week, with boys more likely to buy them. Products such as Prime Energy, Monster, and Rockstar have become increasingly popular.
The majority of supermarkets have voluntarily stopped selling energy drinks to customers younger than sixteen. However, the ease with which they may be purchased from corner stores on the way to school has alarmed parents and educators.
Ministers have not acted on a 2019 proposal calling for a total ban on sales to anyone under the age of sixteen. Some nations, including Lithuania and Latvia, have already outlawed selling energy drinks to minors.
There are different amounts of caffeine in cans: 200 mg in Rockstar, 160 mg in Monster, and 140 mg in Prime Energy. That is about twice as much as the 80 mg in a cup of coffee.
While assembling its election platform, Labour has been debating the possibility of outlawing sales to anyone under the age of sixteen.
Last month, the Children’s Food Campaign and more than forty health groups wrote to Health Secretary Victoria Atkins and her Labour counterpart Wes Streeting to demand the immediate introduction of a ban. The British Dental Association, Diabetes UK, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, and the British Medical Association were among the organisations that signed the letter.
Barbara Crowther of the Children’s Food Campaign said: “Energy drink companies shouldn’t be allowed to increase profits at the expense of child health. The government said it would ban the sale of energy drinks to under 16-year-olds five years ago but didn’t actually do it. All evidence points to these over-caffeinated drinks being harmful to children’s health.
“There is a lot of support for this measure from supermarkets that are already restricting sales to children voluntarily; to protect children properly, there needs to be an outright ban in all sales outlets. With evidence growing on both mental and physical harms of these drinks, it’s time for action.”
Teaching unions have spoken about the role energy drinks can play in poor pupil behaviour and how they present a barrier to learning. NASUWT General Secretary Patrick Roach said last night: “Energy drinks are readily available legal highs, and consumption by young people should be banned.
“Teachers see every day how high levels of these stimulants are impacting poor behaviour in the classroom. Consumption by teenagers can also lead to an increased risk of poor academic performance, sleep problems, and issues with concentration and behaviour. Despite the government announcing a ban in 2019, it never saw the light of day. A ban on energy drinks is long overdue.”
Sales of energy drinks and sports drinks are expected to reach £2.2 billion in 2023, up 21.6 per cent from the previous year.
Finally, someone has realised how dangerous these beverages are. But how much can our government ban? Next, they’ll be banning children, laughter, history, and anything that is social, and they will have us living in gated prisons.
Energy drinks, on the other hand, are just caffeine and sugar in a can.
In the end, energy drinks diminish your energy levels. They provide you with a brief burst of exhilaration, but as soon as the effects wear off, you’re left feeling depleted.
Considering how detrimental these beverages are to our health, I frequently question why they are even offered. But since parents, not the government, are in charge of their children’s behaviour, this has just devolved into yet another nanny state. Our government has allowed children to act freely, and now it wants to rein them in, but it’s a little late for that because if you give them half of something, they’ll always take the whole thing.
THE MONTHLY MOSQUITO 