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Go Ask Your Mother: Are energy drinks safe for my teen?
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It is perhaps a universal concern of parents of teens: Will this or that new trend harm my child? Racy song lyrics, skirt length, piercings . . . there's always something. In the last couple of years, energy drinks have been a hot topic. Teens think they're awesome; parents think they just might be neon cans of poison. I've had it come up in conversations with many of my aquantances, in part because they know that I'm married to the Caffeine Examiner and might have an inside track. Since that's true, and since I also don'r know from energy drinks myself, I thought a guest post was in order.
So, Big Red Boots, are energy drinks safe for teenagers?
There is a good reason to keep your kids away from caffeine. FOr the most part, kids don't need it. And face it, for parents, there is not much worse than dealing with a kid hopped up on sugar and caffeine.
My thirteen-year-old sees deliveries of the latest and greatest caffeine fueled energy drinks arriving on my door like it is Christmas and Chanukah wrapped in one. He would like nothing more to share these with me and try out the lastest insanely caffeinated shots, drinks and treats. But even as the Caffeine Examiner, I know too well the effects of the worlds most-used drug -- and the effects it has on a grownups nervous system, let alone a child's.
But, the scariest thing is, most teenagers can easily handle today's most popular energy drinks with no negative effects. Now, this does not take into account those stupid enough to drink a gallon of Red Bull, or drink 10 of these with 3 pints of vodka. Normal energy drinks as a treat is perfectly fine.
Think of it this way. Red Bull has 80mg of caffeine. All the other energy ingredients in there do NOTHING at all to harm anyone more than a soda would. They all have excess B vitamins, which your body flushes out of your system, and Taurine, which I wrote about here. Guarana is just another form of caffeine, no different than if they said Coffee or green tea. Caffeine from any source is still just caffeine.
Your cup of breakfast blend coffee has around 100mg of caffeine. Even a 20oz Diet Mountain Dew has more caffeine in it than a Red Bull, Monster, or Rockstar. But, there are some energy drinks to watch out there for. Like most things in active parenting, reading the label is important.
Remember, the FDA does not regulate most of these ingredients, so if you don't recognise the ingredient, it would be good to do some researching. Here are some of the more important things to stay away from:
High Fructose Corn Syrup
While not a particularly evil ingredient, [While I don't want to contradict the expert, I think the jury's still out on that -- Elisa] it can be a signal of a drink that is more concerned with taste and less concerned with health. Also, a heavy sugar content means a bigger chance for a crash later on in the day. More energy in the morning is a good thing, but falling asleep in math is very very bad.
Excessive caffeine
Look for drinks that have under 100mg in the can. This is a decent amount - about as much as a cup of coffee, without overloading them and making unable to concentrate and feel jittery. Keep in mind that the bigger 16oz cans may have 2 serving in them. It is also a safe bet that if your energy drink does not list the caffeine in it (Monster, Red Bull and Rockstar don't list the caffeine in them) is has 80mg in a serving.
Weight loss suppliments
Look for those ingredients that you get spammed about in there - like Yohimbine and Hoodia. Most energy drinks don't have them in there, but the ones you can find in GNC and health food stores might carry them with the weight loss or muscle building products.
For more information on some good energy drinks for your teenager, you can find out more here
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