New caffeinated energy drinks may bring potential health risks for consumers, experts have warned.
These drinks contain much larger amounts of caffeine than previously available, say Dr Roland Griffiths and colleagues at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, USA.
Writing in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence, Dr Griffiths states: “The caffeine content of energy drinks varies over a ten-fold range, with some containing the equivalent of 14 cans of Coca-Cola, yet the caffeine amounts are often unlabeled and few include warnings about the potential health risks of caffeine intoxication.”
The new drinks are aimed mainly at teenagers and young adults, with advertisements promoting their performance-enhancing and stimulant effects.
Dr Griffiths’ team has spent decades researching the effects of caffeine. They say the new drinks “appear to glorify drug use”, and want to see adequate, prominent labelling.
Co-author Dr Chad Reissig said: “It’s notable that over-the-counter caffeine-containing products require warning labels, yet energy drinks do not.”
Without such a warning, consumers may not realise how much caffeine they are getting. “It’s like drinking a serving of an alcoholic beverage and not knowing if its beer or scotch,” said Dr Griffiths.
He warns that caffeine intoxication is a recognised clinical syndrome which can produce nervousness, anxiety, restlessness, insomnia, gastrointestinal upset, tremors, rapid heartbeats (tachycardia), psychomotor agitation (restlessness and pacing) and can even be fatal.
A can of cola has about 35 milligrams of caffeine, a cup of brewed coffee has 80 to 150 milligrams, but the caffeine content of energy drinks can be more than 500 milligrams.
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