Even Alcohol-Free Energy Drinks Are Dangerous

According to a new public health study carried out in the United States, it would appear that energy drinks containing no alcohol, but massive amounts of caffeine, pose the same health risks for the individual and the general population as their alcoholic counterparts.

Therefore, it cannot be argued that these drinks are less dangerous, or more health, than those containing alcohol, say researchers from the University of Maryland School of Public Health and Wake Forest University School of Medicine.

Based on the conclusion of their new report, the experts propose that the federal government introduce new labeling requirements for these products, showing the true adverse effects they can trigger.

Other measures that the team calls for include taking immediate action at the consumer level and the introduction of educational packages by health providers. Voluntary disclosures of ingredients by manufacturers is also desirable, experts explain.

Details of their investigation appear in the latest issue of the esteemed scientific Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), in a new commentary published online, Science Blog reports.

“Recent action to make pre-mixed alcoholic energy drinks unavailable was an important first step, but more continued action is needed,” explains UMSPH researcher and team member Amelia Arria,

“Individuals can still mix these highly caffeinated energy drinks with alcohol on their own,” adds the expert, who also holds an appointment as the director of the Center on Young Adult Health and Development at the university.

“It is also concerning that no regulation exists with regard to the level of caffeine that can be in an energy drink,” she goes on to say. WFUSM associate professor of emergency medicine Mary Claire O’Brien was the coauthor of the research.

The team is responsible for the lawsuits brought by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against Four Loko and similar products. The action came as a result of the two alerting numerous state attorneys general to the risk of energy drinks.

According to the researchers, the three most important risks of these products include the fact that consumers mix alcoholic energy drinks with alcohol when they consume them.

“The practice of mixing energy drinks with alcohol […] has been linked consistently to drinking high volumes of alcohol per drinking session and subsequent serious alcohol-related consequences such as sexual assault and driving while intoxicated,” the commentary reads.

The second risk factor is that caffeine can cause adverse reactions in susceptible individuals, especially given the high amounts contained in a single energy drink serving. The third concern is that studies have already linked energy drink use to alcohol dependence and other drug use.