Danger in your drink?

If you know an energy-drink-loving teen, it could be time to wean them off their favourite beverage. US scientists have identified associations between consuming these beverages and risk-seeking behaviour, mental health problems, increased blood pressure, obesity and even kidney damage. They’re now calling for the drinks’ advertised benefits to be reviewed, for marketing aimed at children and adolescents to be regulated, and for caffeine limits to be set. In a nutshell, researchers say the short-term benefits of these drinks are outweighed by serious health risks, especially when mixed with alcohol.

Frontiers in Public Health, November 2017