Energy drinks are very fashionable, yet it is dangerous to consume them as soft drinks, the State Secretary warns.Continue reading
Energy drinks are made for healthy adults who need a quick boost of energy and alertness. The safe amount to consume has been determined by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), saying that a healthy adult can drink up to five cans of energy drinks per day without any concerns, Sándor Csibi, secretary general of the Hungarian Energy Drinks Association, told Világgazdaság. The latter is disputed by many health experts.
“It is important to remember that all foods and even water should be consumed only in moderation,” began Sándor Csibi. He also emphasized that their association agrees that
children should be protected from all dangers, but in this case they believe in education rather than prohibition.
He noted that it is important to explain as widely as possible what energy drinks are for, who they are recommended for, who they are not recommended for, and how much is safe to consume.
The debate sparked after MEPs Lőrinc Nacsa and István Hollik proposed a legal ban on the purchase of energy drinks for under-18s. The two politicians of the governing party announced this in a joint video statement.
“We are both fathers of three children, so child protection is not only a political task for us, but also a parental duty,” said Hollik, adding that they are well aware of the dangers for children, one of which is the daily consumption of energy drinks. He also mentioned that in the last four years, the ambulance service has treated an average of 100 children under 18 years of age each year for energy drink consumption. “This makes it very clear that the consumption of these products in this age group poses health risks,” he noted.
Nacsa recalled that a year ago, a 14-year-old boy who had been drinking energy drinks before the incident, died of cardiac arrest while at school in Hatvan (northern Hungary). Moreover, teachers report that it is common for “children to fall asleep in class around 10-11 a.m.,” when the effects of energy drinks consumed before school starts to wear off. “It is therefore clear that we need to take action on this issue,” said Nacsa, arguing for a classification similar to alcohol products.
The secretary general of the Hungarian Energy Drinks Association has indicated that not “only” energy drinks are not recommended for children, but also anything containing caffeine, including coffee, energy drinks, and Coca-Cola. He emphasized that
a liter of cola contains as much sugar as a liter of an energy drink and as much caffeine as a can of an energy drink.
Therefore, if the proposed law is aimed at protecting children, then cola should also be banned for under-18s, because the effect of caffeine is the same in everything. He stressed that for children, getting enough sleep and rest is the recommended energizing solution.
Another news site, Magyar Nemzet, asked paediatrician Tamás Bense, about the ban on energy drinks for minors. The medical professional highlighted that many other products that are widely consumed on a daily basis also contain caffeine, such as coffee or cola,
but the patients who were hospitalized for caffeine overdose were almost exclusively energy drink consumers.
This is even more true when looking at cases involving children.
The pediatrician also pointed out that teenagers almost never stop at one can of energy drink. It varies from person to person, but this kind of lifestyle not only gets children fired up, but can cause sleep disturbance, high blood pressure, and lead to heart problems in many.
Via Világgazdaság, Featured image via Pixabay
