THE KIDS' LEGAL BUZZ

The buzz is unreal, they say. It can last for hours in some cases days. You
feel like you can take on the world, as if you have wings. Extravagant
claims from a group of youngsters describing the latest illegal substance
to hit the rave scene? No.

In fact, they're talking about the effects of products they bought from the
fridge of their local supermarket: high-energy drinks with high-energy
names such as Red Bull, Dynamite and Carbo Power, which have become their
chosen beverage. Shops that stock them say they're selling a bomb. Pubs
around the country can't keep up with the demand.

These slickly-packaged, high-powered drinks are making their mark on the
Irish market, despite the fact that in other European countries some of
them are banned.

The pair of twentysomething Danish tourists can't believe their eyes.
They've just seen their favourite drink for sale in an Irish pub. In their
country it is illegal officially, they say, because it contains vitamins,
and Danish law prohibits the artificial addition of vitamins to food and
drink.

Unofficially, they claim, it had become too associated with youth culture
and its related drug use. From time to time they manage to get it at home,
where it is sold on the black market at raves. They drink it with vodka to
get the high of their lives.

Red Bull is the one of fastest-growing soft drinks in Ireland. Launched in
Austria in 1987, it was the creation of a native businessman who acquired a
taste for energy drinks while on business in Asia. Their particular appeal
lay in the fact that they eased the effects of jetlag. He saw their
potential in Europe.

The drink is aimed at people who are focused, active, clear-minded and
performance-oriented. Ironically, in Ireland it is quite commonly consumed
with alcohol or by those suffering its after effects and seeking a magic
cure.

But Red Bull is just one of an array of soft drinks widely available here
which claim to stimulate body and mind, and offer instant energy in times
of stress. Appealing to an increasingly sedentary young population who are
more interested in acquiring the trappings of an active lifestyle such as
tracksuits and trainers rather than actually having one they promise
increased concentration and improved physical strength.

But do their promises actually deliver? A recent survey carried out by the
Food Commission in Britain found not. What they did discover, however, is
that the majority of energy drinks were little more than overpriced soft
drinks containing a cocktail of sugar, unnecessary additives and caffeine,
which have no physical or mental benefits, and which actually have the
overall effect of dehydrating the body.

Of further concern is the revelation that some manufacturers use misleading
advertising to entice health-conscious people to buy their products. The
survey found that much of the advertising misinformed users by referring to
sugar simply as carbohydrate, without breaking down the different
components into individual carbohydrate types and clarifying how much is
actual sugar. In tests, some drinks were actually found to contain as much
as 15 level teaspoons of sugar per can.

While complex carbohydrates such as pasta, rice and bread are an essential
source of energy, sports dieticians do not recommend high intakes of sugar
or simple carbohydrates. Although strenuous physical activity requires
increased fluid intake, most high-energy drinks are unsuitable as fluid
replacers because of their high sugar content, which causes liquid to
absorb into the body more slowly.

The manufacturers of some products which are very high in sugar claim that
they contain the carbohydrates `your body needs'. Another product purports
to supply the user with more carbohydrate than two-and-a-half large tins of
spaghetti, giving the impression that the product contains the kind of
starches found in pasta.

When asked to provide a breakdown of carbohydrate content, some
manufacturers refused on the grounds of confidentiality. SmithKline
Beecham, manufacturers of Lucozade, were among those who said that this
information was not for the public domain.

Despite the high sugar levels contained in many energy drinks, it is their
caffeine content that is the cause of most concern. New research has found
that caffeine levels in energy drinks are on average three times higher
than the levels found in cola drinks. The average caffeine content in the
energy drinks available here is the equivalent of that found in four cups
of coffee.

Caffeine, which has no nutritional value and offers only an artificial
energy boost, can also have a powerful diuretic effect and merely
dehydrates the user. More seriously, while no definite links have been
established between moderate caffeine consumption and health risks such as
cancer and cardiovascular illness, it can produce irritability, headaches
and insomnia.

Numerous studies have found that high caffeine intake can harm the
reproductive system and jeopardise foetal development.

Professor Jack James, head of psychology at University College Galway and
an expert on the effects of habitual caffeine consumption, believes parents
need to be aware of the habits their children may be forming at a young age
habits which could stay with them for the rest of their lives.

``Parents need to be informed about what their children are drinking,''
says Professor James. ``Caffeine is an addictive drug which induces
physical dependency, and becoming dependent at a very young age can have
harmful effects.

``A large number of new soft drinks have been introduced in America, some
just with caffeine added, which use drugs terminology in their marketing,
suggesting that kids will get a hit or buzz from the product. They are
creating an image that it's hip to use caffeine to get a lift. It's a very
similar approach to the tobacco industry: get them young, get them hooked
and you have them for life.''

Professor James is currently in the process of publishing findings which
show that caffeine produces no improvement in cognitive performance
contrary to popular belief and claims made by certain soft drinks
manufacturers. He believes there needs to be greater regulation regarding
the labelling of caffeine content in various products, so that consumers
can be aware of their overall intake.

Germany has only recently legalised high-energy drinks, despite substantial
opposition on the grounds of the high levels of ingredients such as
caffeine. In Germany, a legal limit of 320mg of caffeine in high-energy
drinks applies, a dose lower than the amount allowed by authorities here.

The addition of vitamins and minerals to energy drinks, while of some
benefit, may give the impression that the product is healthier and more
natural than it actually is. Vitamins, some of which can be stored in the
body, can only yield energy when they work in conjunction with other
nutrients, such as protein and carbohydrates. Often these drinks are
consumed as a replacement for proper nutrients.

According to the manufacturers of Red Bull, taurine, one of the drink's
main ingredients, serves as an energy transmitter and detoxifier. Taurine
is a non-essential amino acid which is found in food and can also be
manufactured by the body, but there is no scientific evidence to show that
adding it to drinks can improve physical or mental performance.

Many energy drinks also contain numerous additives, including colourants,
flavourings and sweeteners, none of which offer any nutritional or physical
benefits. Interestingly, Ireland is the only country in the EU which sells
red lemonade, which contains tartrazine E102, a yellow food colouring
synthetically produced from petroleum and known to have an adverse effect
on hyperactive children.

Dr Patrick Wall, chief executive of the Food Safety Authority, is concerned
about the growth in the consumption of energy drinks among young Irish
people. In particular, he is worried that drinks companies are making
claims that the products are beneficial to the health, when that is not
necessarily the case.

``I would be concerned about some of the health claims made by some
advertisers, which the public believe to be true. People need to cautious
and aware of what they are drinking. There is a misconception that
high-energy drinks can be a substitute for a healthy diet. That is not the
case.

``It may be the case that people are actually overloading themselves with
some of the contents, such as vitamins, and in that way they could have a
dangerous effect. If people have a healthy well-balanced diet, there is no
need to use products which claim to give them extra energy.''

The FSA recently set up a commission which will examine high-energy drinks
and their effects on consumers.

Checked-by: (Joel W. Johnson)