Energy drinks now make up 20% of beverages sold in Australia. They are being introduced to young children who believe that they will have increased energy, stamina or performance, yet no study carried out on energy drinks to date, have discovered these commercial claims to be true.

Dr. Naren Gunja, medical director of Poisons and clinical toxicology at Westmead Hospital in NSW discovered that between 2004- 2010, more than 300 calls were made to the poisons hotline purely relating to the consumption of energy drinks.

The down side of all this caffeine is how it stimulates our nervous system into a “fight or flight” response, triggering a cascade of hormones to make us feel anxious, tense, flighty, edgy, and effecting clear decision-making and long-term concentration. While symptoms such as: headache, tummy upset, shaking hands, heart palpitations, trouble sleeping, trouble breathing, psychosis, seizures and arrhythmias all are sign of caffeine toxicity.

In very simple terms energy drinks are very sweet coffee’s packed full of not just caffeine but huge amounts of sugar, artificial additives and stimulants, and it is very concerning that our young people are becoming regular users of them

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Honor Tremain –  Nutritionist and health writer

Honor is a qualified naturopathic Nutritionist and health writer. She is very passionate about nutrition and health, and has been working in the field for almost 20 years.

Honor is the head nutrition writer for the multi-national Fitness First magazine, which won best app for an iPhone & tablet device in 2011 for the ‘Magazine excellence awards’.

Honor also has her own ‘Ask Honor’ column and weekly health article in the APN newspapers for The Fraser Coast Chronicle and Observer in QLD.

She designs weight loss meals and menu’s for Sydney based food manufacturer Core Food Concepts.

Honor has lectured and supervised the Nutritional medicine students at one of Sydney’s largest Natural therapies college’s- Nature Care College.

You can follow her and many of her articles on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/HonorTremain