The Risk of Energy Drinks - Essay Example

The energy drinks market is worldwide, and it is still growing year by year because of a great number of commercials and advertisements. There are many reasons for people to consume energy drinks, among which are Monster, Power Horse and Red Bull. The companies that produce energy drinks show more benefits of energy drinks in their advertisements, and at the same time they ignore the health risks to attract people to buy their beverages. In some countries, there are no laws to reduce the quantity of ingredients, such as caffeine, carbohydrates and sugar which keep human health at risk if they consume them in large amounts. Although energy drinks have advantages, they may also affect both physical and mental health of consumers. There is a range of positive effects of energy drinks which make the market of energy drinks grow as great numbers of people consume them and take them as a favourite drink. For instance, according to recent statistics, energy drinks take around 20 percent of the entire beverages store in market (Gunja & Brown, 2012). This shows that the growing popularity is mainly created by the fast positive effects an energy drinks can produce. The main constituents that energy drinks have per bottle are “carbohydrate, caffeine, guarana, sodium, ginseng, taurine” and other ingredients ("Sports drinks and," 2011). The first benefit of energy drinks is that when drinking them a person can show improvements in paying attention, concentration and memory due to the nervous system stimulation (Johnson, Foster & McDowell,2014). Clearly, energy drinks can improve and make people more active in their mental performance, which seems to be the most important advantage of energy drinks. The second benefit that makes energy drinks good for people is that they improve and increase physical performance. Research proves the relationship between the energy drinks use and the improvement of reaction time and delayed tiredness. Moreover, according to Johnson, Foster and McDowell (2014), there are five studies that examined effects of energy beverages, and they show improvements of upper and lower body muscles strengths as well as cycling strength. Therefore, energy drinks can be useful when a person trains hard or involves in a long and concentrated mental work and needs a boost of energy, attention and concentration. Due to the ability to decrease the time of recovery, energy drinks can allow one to be physically and mentally active for a longer period of time and with a better concentration. These positive effects make energy drinks a common fuel for a sport event, a learning session, or increase of alertness after a few hours sleep at night. Energy drinks are ones of the top drinks at the beverages market, but they have a long list of negative effects and health risks which always bring safety and health of their consumers into a question. Today, the energy drinks market contains important change of beverages, each having its own special ingredients. The main reason why energy drinks are unhealthy and dangerous is that the whole industry is mainly not controlled by any law (Arria & O.Brien, 2011). For this reason, a great number of scientific sources explain that the compound of such beverages negatively affects all systems in the body. For example, regular consumption is linked to sleep disturbances, high blood pressure, increased heart rate, temperature, gastric secretion, obesity, diuresis and appearance of arrhythmias (Arria & O.Brien, 2011). Moreover, caffeine can increase anxiety in people who have anxiety disorders ("Sports drinks and," 2011). In addition, Burrows (2013) cites gastrointestinal upset, nausea, insomnia, spontaneous abortion as a possible result for people who drink beverages such as Monster and Redbull. Furthermore, energy drinks can also be the cause of such symptoms as headache, muscle pain, discomfort, and others (Burrows, 2013). As a whole, the majority of the articles name the same symptoms. What is more, while the habit of energy drinks consumption can, to some degree, be justified by the positive effects they are likely to produce, their use by children and adolescents should be given a special attention. The list of common components of energy drinks includes stimulants that are not recommended for adolescents and children, because their use is not justified by scientific literature. The possibility of varied negative effects is spotted, and there is no evidence or researches that shows if the energy drinks are safe for children and adolescents ("Sports drinks and," 2011). Also, while the presence of positive immediate effects on adults is often mentioned, there is a lack of research on similar effects on children and adolescents, and whether it is safe for children and adolescents or not. At the same time, the amount of caffeine in energy drinks gives a ground to discuss their toxicity, which is proved by the overuse of caffeine reports from hospitals and poisons centres (Reissig, Strain & Griffiths, 2009). Consumers’ heart, blood vessels and neurologic systems are also likely to be negatively influenced by energy drinks. In addition, the risk of addiction and physical dependence is present. To conclude, this essay discusses the possible benefits and the health risks associated with energy drinks. Most of people interested in beverages and their ingredients agree on the fact that currently there is a lack of evidence and research that could be helpful in making recommendations for safe limits of energy drinks consumption. Also, there is a lack of data on the effects of single components and their mixture. This means that much of the properties and long term effects of energy drinks is still unknown, and therefore, people should show an increased carefulness and be fully aware of the potential health risks. Substances that are aimed at activating boost of energy are not included into a healthy diet of individuals, especially children and adolescents. Therefore, energy drinks must be labelled with a warning that they are not suitable for children and for pregnant women. The government must set an amount limit of every single component in energy drinks, and the companies that do not follow the rules and the amount limit should be banned. People should not wait for the government action, and they must reduce energy drinks consumption by themselves. References List Arria, A., & O’Brien, M. (2011). The “high” risk of energy drinks. Journal of the American Medical Association, 305(6), 600-601. Burrows, et al., (2013). What are the health implications associated with the consumption of energy drinks? A systematic review. Nutrition Reviews, 71(3), 135–148. Gunja, N., & Brown, J. (2012). Energy drinks: Health risks and toxicity. Medical Journal of Australia, (196), 46-49. Johnson, L., Foster, D., & McDowell, J. (2014). Energy drinks: Review of performance benefits, health concerns, and use by military personnel. Military Medicine, 179(4), 375-380. Sports drinks and energy drinks for children and adolescents: Are they appropriate? (2011). Pediatrics, 1182-1189. Read More