♪ Fact of the Day. ♪
- Fact of the Day.
Hello, hi, and welcome to Fact of the Day
with me, Mark Lotsu.
Should children drink energy drinks?
Now I know that they've been
banned in a lot of schools
and also Jamie Oliver's
spearheading campaign
in order to get them banned to be sold
to children full stop.
But are they really that bad?
So a lot of the supermarket giants plan
to ban the big offenders in
the energy drinks industry.
And this is gonna be led by Waitrose
who is going to ban them
to under 16 year olds
and others are thinking
of following in March.
Now the energy drink companies say,
"Well, it's about the
same amount as caffeine
"as there is in a cup of coffee."
But that may be for one of the small cans,
but what about one of
the absolutely huge cans.
And that's not the end of the problem.
Now a lot of people
may be getting confused
between energy drinks and sports drinks.
Now sports drinks contain
sugar, water, and electrolytes.
And the point of a sports
drink is to rehydrate
you after heavy exercise.
Now obviously, drinking
too many sports drinks
isn't a good thing because
of the amount of sugar
that's in them.
And far too many can
lead to risk increase.
And far to many can lead
to an increased risk
of type two diabetes, obesity,
and also lots and lots of dental work.
But, the energy drinks, now they contain
lots and lots of sugar like sports drinks,
but they also contain
caffeine, which is a stimulant.
And the reason that kids
drink energy drinks is
because it helps to keep them awake.
But this increased alertness
is very short lived.
And then quickly afterwards
you feel very drowsy,
very sleepy, not able
to function properly.
Now one of the big problem
areas is the classroom.
And in 2016, 13% of
teachers said that they feel
that children's poor
behaviour is partly down
to the consumption of energy drinks.
And a 2015 study by Yale University
found that 66% of 11 to 14 year olds
were more likely to be hyperactive
and have a lack of concentration
due to drinking energy drinks.
So in children, energy drinks
can lead to sleep disruption.
And you all know, as kids, you need
to get as much sleep as you possibly can
because that's when your brain
and your body develop properly.
So it can actually inhibit can reduce
both brain and body development.
And a high caffeine intake
can lead to palpitation,
high blood pressure, nausea, convulsions,
vomiting and in extreme cases, death.
And there's also a link between
having energy drinks and
high risk behaviours,
for example fighting, sexual risk taking,
dares, drinking, drugs,
not wearing seatbelts,
that sort of thing.
And scarily, some of
the reports have shown
that 18% of under 10 year olds
have been drinking energy drinks.
I'll put links to the
reports in the description.
Oh, so all this caffeine is bad for us,
so why not ban coffee as well?
The issue is that energy drinks
don't just contain caffeine,
they contain a whole host
of other substances as well.
Things like taurine, which
is a caffeine substitute.
They'll contain caffeine
and taurine and guarana.
which increases the
potency of the caffeine.
And as I've said, the energy drinks
have got lots and lots and lots and lots
of sugar in them as well.
So sports drinks and
things like fruit juice
contain lots of sugar.
Tea and coffee contain lots of caffeine.
And energy drinks combine
sugar and caffeine
in ridiculous amounts as
well as other chemicals.
End result, no kids, no
children should be drinking
energy drinks full stop.
There's absolutely zero benefit for them
to drinking energy drinks.
And the downside of
drinking them is phenomenal.
It's not worth the risks
of high caffeine intake,
and high sugar intake,
just to stay awake a little bit longer.
If you want to stay awake
a little bit longer,
go to bed earlier, turn off
your electronic devices,
at least an hour before you go to sleep.
Read a book, do something else.
Then you'll be able to sleep,
and then your body and your
brain will be able to grow
and you will feel much
better in the morning.
So that is, should kids
drink energy drinks?
Thanks for tuning in.
Love ya bye, love ya bye, love you bye.
(upbeat music)
