While moderate elevations in blood pressure after use of energy products may be relatively innocuous in healthy adults, they can be concerning in developing children, who have smaller body sizes and no developed tolerance to stimulant drugs. For cardiovascular health, it is known that the acute effects of caffeine and consumption of energy products can moderately increase blood pressure and heart rate ( Mesas et al., 2011 Seifert JG et al., 2011 Higgins and Babu, 2013 Marczinski et al., 2014). There are health concerns for children and young adults using these products, with a heavy focus on the concerns related to cardiovascular functioning, even though brain development should also be a consideration for these demographic groups. The majority of these products are consumed by children, adolescents, and young adults ( Malinauskas et al., 2007 Heckman et al., 2010 Wolk et al. As a category with exponential sales growth, the use of energy drinks has been extremely controversial. They represent 63% of the functional beverage category, with traditional sports drinks comprising only 27% of sales ( Datamonitor, 2008). Sales of energy drinks continue to climb worldwide, with sales reportedly nearing $50 billion ( Fig. In addition to the primary psychoactive ingredient of caffeine that is included in energy drinks to enhance consumer alertness and energy, there are a variety of other compounds in energy drinks, including taurine, ginseng, glucuroncolactone, guarana, and vitamins ( Marczinski, 2015). While typical ingredients found in energy drinks and shots can vary by brand and can be proprietary information, most energy drinks are sweetened carbonated beverages containing 80–320 mg of caffeine per serving, similar to a range seen in a prototypical cup of coffee. Additional work is needed though to address gaps in our understanding of how taurine affects females, since the majority of animal studies focused exclusively on male subjects.Įnergy drinks are relatively new consumer products that are similar to soft drinks, with additional additives and higher doses of caffeine ( Howard and Marczinski, 2010). Although the aged or diseased brain might benefit from taurine or caffeine supplementation, it appears that adolescents are not likely to benefit from supplementation and may, in fact, suffer ill effects from chronic ingestion of high doses. The data suggest that age is an important factor in both caffeine and taurine toxicity. Key data from animal studies are summarized to highlight both reported benefits and adverse effects reported following acute and chronic exposures. The differential and combinatorial effects of caffeine and taurine on the developing brain are reviewed here with an emphasis on the adolescent brain, which is still maturing. An additional risk has been noted among college-aged consumers of energy drinks who appear at higher risk of over-consumption of alcohol when the two drinks are consumed together. Energy drink consumption by children has raised concerns, due to potential caffeine toxicity. Energy drinks contain a variety of ingredients, but many of the top-selling brands include high doses of caffeine and the amino acid taurine. ![]() Energy drinks are emerging as a major component of the beverage market with sales projected to top $60 billion globally in the next five years.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |