Energy Drinks: Good or Bad for Kids?
Energy drinks is now flooding the market. What is in it that attracts consumers to buy them? The bad thing about this is that more and more of our kids are becoming hooked on this drink.
So what does energy drink do to your body? One 14-year old kid said that it hypes her up. You can call it a buzz in a bottle which is the new high-dose sugary caffeine drink of the younger crowd. Many of these energy drinks double or triple the amount of caffeine in a traditional can of soda. The same can be said for the gourmet coffee confections which are loaded sugar and calories. As you consume these energy drinks, you get hooked because of the caffeine in it which is an addictive compound. All these caffeine may have serious effect on the bodies of growing up children starting with dehydration because all they drink is this.
An overdose of caffeine have serious after effects which includes rapid heart rate, heart palpitations and even seizures.
Many of the young crowd is drawn to these energy drinks because everybody is looking for that extra pick-me-up like students so that they will stay awake in order to study, teenagers who want to be up all night to play video games and to professionals who need a quick energy boost.
Caffeine poisoning is not the only condition that concerns doctors. With childhood obesity that is rising alarmingly, they see is as a new way for kids to consume empty calories. Just think that a single Java Chip frappuccino with whipped cream has 510 calories and 59 grams of sugar in a half-liter drink. This is equal to half a cup of sugar in just one drink.
Downing energy drinks, especially at crunch time like exams can backfire. Yes, you will have your energy boost after drinking a can but having several can or a whole pot os coffee can have the opposite effect. Your ability to concentrate is actually lessened because you are so vigilat, you can hardly process the data that you are trying to memorize.
Most energy drinks contain ingredients that accelerate the effects of caffeine like taurine and guarana. Signs of overdose are nervousness, anxiety, insomnia, shaking, nausea and diarrhea.
So what is the reasonable amount of caffeine that kids can have? many pediatricians will tell you that caffeine is too much for a child, even a teenager, that they should not have it all. How can parents tell if their kids have developed a caffeine habit? Parents have to observe their kids when that energy drink of coffee is not available to them for 24 hours. If they appear to be excessively sleepy, lethargic and gets a headache, then it is time to cut back or quit altogether.