As a school community, we are concerned about the increasing consumption of energy drinks and the effects they can have on children and adolescent health. Much like soft drinks; energy drinks are not to be consumed at school. Energy drinks are loaded with caffeine and can deprive children of much needed sleep. Without sufficient sleep, learning becomes harder and self-regulating emotions is also much harder to do. The Sleep Health Foundation suggest teenagers need 8-10 hours of sleep, more than an adult, because their bodies and cognition are growing rapidly. Sleep is vital for teenagers' mental health. Lack of sleep can contribute to acne, aggressive behaviour, weight gain and unhealthy eating habits.  

Did you know?  The standard energy drink bottle is 500ml compared to 375ml for soft drinks and this means double the amount of sugar – 21 teaspoons in some energy drinks compared to 10 teaspoons in a smaller bottle of soft drink. This is three times the recommended daily limit for added sugar in the diet.

Energy drinks contain 160mg of caffeine, more than twice as much as a cup of coffee or a 500ml bottle of cola.

Please have a conversation with your child around the consumption of energy drinks as they might not know the short and long term effects they can have on their bodies

Michelle Pudney