Since adolescents are the main consumers of EDs ( Seifert et al., 2011 Gallimberti et al., 2013) serious concerns have been raised about the detrimental effects of EDs consumption on key brain neurodevelopmental processes. Search terms included: energy drinks/adverse effects OR energy drinks/toxicity energy drinks/cardiovascular system energy drinks/alcohol energy drinks/sport energy drinks/children OR energy drinks/adolescence caffeine/adolescence OR caffeine/brain development taurine/brain development energy drinks/alcohol use disorders OR energy drinks/drug use disorders. Only English-language articles were reviewed. The reference lists of the identified articles were also scanned. A special focus was placed on EDs adverse effects (on cardiovascular system and increased risk of drug addiction) especially on children and adolescents. Nowadays, the harmful consequences of intake of EDs are the most discussed topic of the scientific literature opening a door to awareness of possible dangers of these drinks to adolescents ( Curran and Marczinski, 2017 Hladun et al., 2021 Marinoni et al., 2022).Ī bibliographic search in MEDLINE/PubMed was carried out to collect clinical and pre-clinical research or review articles on EDs, and their main ingredients (caffeine, taurine, etc.), from 1987 to September 2022. Moreover, research on this matter at preclinical level is still limited. The regular intake and long-term consequences of consumption of EDs are not well recognized, most notably the possible dangerous effects on adolescents are not sufficiently studied. Moreover, adolescents who consumed more than one ED per week were those also consuming soft drinks daily, alcohol weekly, and having high screen times or late bedtimes ( Lebacq et al., 2020). Compared to girls, adolescent boys have been found to consume EDs more than once a week. These products are commonly consumed by adolescents and first consumption usually occurs prior to age 12 ( Costa et al., 2016). Although EDs companies promote EDs for energizing, anti-fatigue, concentration-boosting, and ergogenic properties, there is a serious lack of evidence and clinical trials to validate their benefits ( Ruiz and Scherr, 2018). These ingredients can differ by brand as well as the list of ingredients that can be proprietary information. Classic ingredients found in EDs are taurine, glucuronolactone, B vitamins, L-carnitine, sucrose, antioxidants, minerals and other herbal supplements like ginseng, guarana, yerba mate, cocoa, kola nut, and ginkgo biloba ( Higgins et al., 2010). There is an increasing need to disseminate knowledge on EDs damage on health, so that adolescents can be aware about the potential harmful outcomes of consuming these drinks.Įnergy drinks (EDs) are relatively new products that are like soft drinks, with additional additives and higher caffeine concentration that is the cornerstone of these beverages ( Howard and Marczinski, 2010). EDs combined with alcohol are also gaining popularity among adolescents and different publications indicate that this combined consumption might increase the risk to develop an alcohol use disorder, as well as produce serious adverse cardiovascular effects. The regular intake and long-term consequences of these caffeinated drinks are not well documented, especially the possible negative effects in adolescents whose brain is still developing. Although EDs companies claim about the ergogenic and remineralizing properties of their products, there is a serious lack of evidence at preclinical as well as clinical level to validate their benefits. The majority of consumers are children, adolescents, and young athletes.
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