The Organization of Consumers and Users (OCU) has proposed to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs to regulate labeling of energy drinks similar to that of tobacco, in which 65 percent of the surface of the container is reserved to highlight warning messages.
The entity considers that it should be indicated on the packaging that it is a drink not recommended for minors, that it should not be consumed combined with alcohol and that it contains a high caffeine content, warning that no more than 3 mg of caffeine should be consumed. caffeine per kilogram of body weight.
For the Organization of Consumers and Users, caffeine, consumed in moderate amounts, increases alertness and reduces drowsiness, and could even have beneficial effects on cardiovascular health. But he warns that in excess these benefits become risks that can interrupt sleep, cause anxiety and produce behavioral changes. Additionally, in the long term, they can cause cardiovascular problems.
In this sense, he points out that many of these drinks contain other stimulant substances such as ginseng, glucoronolactone or taurine, which “it is known that, consumed in excess, can cause tremors and chest pain.” Likewise, the OCU considers that energy drinks are not the only source of caffeine, since cola drinks and coffee have high levels of caffeine, so the combination between them can worryingly increase the levels of this stimulant. in the organism.
The OCU points out that “abuse of the consumption of energy drinks among adolescents is currently observed.” According to the National Plan on Drugs (Estudes Report), 45 percent of young people between 14 and 18 years old use them frequently. Furthermore, a recent OCU study warns that at least twelve energy drinks on sale in supermarkets and convenience stores equal or exceed 150 mg of caffeine per can, the maximum daily amount established by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). for a 50 kg teenager.
Likewise, the organization has shown its concern about the mixing of energy drinks with alcohol, which is practiced by 16 percent of adolescents (Estudes Report) and which the World Health Organization warns against.
“Basically, because it can imply a greater and longer intake of alcohol, since it reduces the feeling of sleep and allows the night to lengthen, which usually translates into a state of drunkenness completely awake, increasing the damage to health,” they indicate from the OCU, which at the same time urges the Ministry “to take measures to prevent the risks derived from its abuse in its consumption.”
