[Closed] Energy drinks ban.

The issue is surely that energy drinks are sort of fashionable for 13-17 yo kids? Why, I don't really know, but you see them hanging around in parks trying to impress girls holding a massive can of whatever. It's almost like a legal beer. I'm sure it's a bit of a fad and will probably go away if we leave it alone. On the other hand, you can be sure that banning their sale will only increase popularity...

The issue is surely that energy drinks are sort of fashionable for 13-17 yo kids?

Round me me the kids are holding canisters of nitrous... anything that gives a bit of a buzz and is accessible will be in fashion. Once they ban these then there will be government warnings on coffee and then any kind of stimulant..

Post-ban, as soon as the withdrawal symptoms kick in, they'll be forced to familiarise themselves with drip filters , French-presses and percolators.

thats a whole cadre of baristas in the making!

caffeine isn't just a stimulant. The proper stuff (freshly ground) has some kind of galvanising effect. Anecdotally though, it seems to assist the body metabolise nutrients. More research required!

there may be people who get through their working day without it, but they may be missing out on its other benefits.

Vochy - lucozade have already reduced the sugar content to avoid the sugar tax so it is now less effective than it used to be for treating hypos.  It doesn’t contain high quantities of caffeine so I can’t imagine diabetic children having problems obtaining sugary drinks unless they also want a buzz...

Apparently these “energy” drinks have a similar amount of caffeine as a cup of coffee

Depends what  you consider to be a “cup” of coffee.  500 mL monster has about 170 mg of caffeine.  The original sized Redbull had 80 mg of caffeine.  The amount of caffeine in a coffee varies enormously with the production method, the size of the drink etc.  But a double espresso is usually roughly about 80 mg caffeine (hence the claim a can of Redbull is about the same).  A cup of crappy Nescafé has a bit less.  However someone drinking a can of monster is having the equivalent of more than four espressos...  there’s young guys in my office having three cans a day - that’s 12 espressos worth (and thats just in office hours), talking to them this is behaviour that started at school.  I doubt there are many school pupils necking a dozen espressos during the day...

My thoughts are it's just a fashion thing and not a good one at that.

I don't really buy the diabetic aspect, you can always dump a load of sugar granuals into a glass of warm water if really stuck.

The caffeine content in many energy drinks is too high, granted you can get coffee with high caffeine if your a coffee aficionado and that's your preference.. But it seems detrimental and irresponsible to me to package up a high caffeine high sugar fruit flavoured carbonated drink aimed at children.

Unless you’re referring to the desk bound few who can grab a coffee any time they like. I’ve never needed coffee to function at work, and still don’t.

Agreed. I spend a lot of time in the office with access to a bean to cup machine and very nice it is too. Don't need it to function though. If I do have a coffee it's for pleasure, not out of necessity.

there may be people who get through their working day without it, but they may be missing out on its other benefits

Get through the day? Sounds to me like you either have a caffeine addition or have attention seeking issues.

Back online...for the time being, lol!

i think that the huge cans may be replaced by huge coffee flasks as the 'must-have' fashion accessory.

yes, slightly caffeine dependent, but as sports types have noticed, along with chocolate and creatine, caffeine has performance -enhancing features. Wasn't gianni bugno temporarily banned from pro-cycling for exceeding the max six cups per day?

though in my case, not being an elite level athlete, the positive effects are mostly cognitive.

as for attention-seeking?

with my looks, I can draw a crowd just opening a bag of crisps.

Yeah I can see it now kids hanging out on the street corners and bus shelters with their Thermos flasks and tartan blankets.

Or clustered around an aeropress.

Next new thing will be chewing coffee... like chewing tobacco but gives a caffeine hit...

"Next new thing will be chewing coffee… like chewing tobacco but gives a caffeine hit…"

hence the flasks...they'll need some kind of 'spitoon' and/ or one full of sawdust:)

These really are excellent. I customised mine with some silicon wristbands for extra grip...

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F163166538909

though for drinking out of,  not spitting!