A top Canadian journal, Canadian Medical Association Journal, has launched attack on some of the energy drinks available in the market. Energy drinks with high content of caffeine do provide the Canadians of all age with an energy push but some of the brands are overdosing the drug that has the potential to result in intoxication.

The editorial published on Tuesday says that high-caffeine drinks are no longer limited to being termed as beverages; these have in fact turned into drugs in the form of tasty syrups. These energy drinks usually contain about the same caffeine present in two cans of cola or one cup of coffee — 80-140 mg for every 250 ml. But in the recent times, some brands are coming up energy drinks with a caffeine content equivalent to 5 cans of cola. These super-loaded syrups are cleverly marketed mainly through sports sponsorship.

59 reports on the negative reactions of energy drinks were reported to Health Canada. Acute intoxication due to caffeine can lead to vomiting, nausea and heart shivers. This has lead Health Canada to review its approach to these drinks.

The maximum intake of caffeine recommended for an adult is 400 mg per day or approximately 3 cups or 297 ml of brewed coffee. As for kids, the caffeine intake should not exceed 62.5 mg for children aged 7-9 and not more than 85 mg for kids aged 10-12. For teens above 13 years, the caffeine intake should be limited to 2.5 mg per kg of the individual’s body weight.

Energy drinks have turned into a kind of drug that more people are being dependent on and they start using it in bigger quantities leading to adverse effects. The Health Canada agency is now launching a campaign to force the energy drinks to be properly labeled about the caffeine content and misleading information to be avoided so that the consumers can make the right decision if they are willing to consume that much of caffeine.

Source:

Canadian Medical Association Journal