Energy Drinks
How many of you drink energy drinks? Just one a day or a few a day? Did you know that while only one a day may not lead to excessive caffeine intake, two or more in a single day can? Excessive amounts of caffeine intake can lead to headaches, jitteriness, and upset stomachs. Kentucky is thinking about passing a law to make it illegal for someone under 18 to buy energy drinks. Many people (including me) want this law to be passed.
When I did my research on this issue, it was found that in France some forms of energy drinks are banned because of their role in sports-related deaths. In one case a young athlete died after drinking 4 cans of red bull before playing a basketball game. Your thinking “How do we know that it was because of the energy drinks?” Well, we know this because this is not the only case in which an athlete has died after drinking energy drinks. If people under 18 are allowed to buy energy drinks then there will most likely be more deaths. So why should people under 18 be allowed to buy energy drinks? They don’t understand how much drinking just two or three before a game can affect their lives.
The concentration of sugar in a sports drink is recommended to be 6-7% carbohydrate to allow maximum absorption and minimize spikes and crashes in blood sugar. Higher concentrations such as those in energy drinks will slow fluid absorption into the blood and energy system, increasing the possibility of dehydration. The drinks may cause seizures due to the "crash" following the energy high that occurs after drinking the energy drink. Seizures can be serious, causing permanent damage to the brain or even death, although it’s rare. Who would want some kid to have seizures because they thought energy drinks were good? I certainly don’t.
Not all sports drinks are bad. In fact most aren’t when drank in moderate amounts. The problem is that most people think that if a little is good a lot will be great. But that’s not the case. People under 18 won’t
When I did my research on this issue, it was found that in France some forms of energy drinks are banned because of their role in sports-related deaths. In one case a young athlete died after drinking 4 cans of red bull before playing a basketball game. Your thinking “How do we know that it was because of the energy drinks?” Well, we know this because this is not the only case in which an athlete has died after drinking energy drinks. If people under 18 are allowed to buy energy drinks then there will most likely be more deaths. So why should people under 18 be allowed to buy energy drinks? They don’t understand how much drinking just two or three before a game can affect their lives.
The concentration of sugar in a sports drink is recommended to be 6-7% carbohydrate to allow maximum absorption and minimize spikes and crashes in blood sugar. Higher concentrations such as those in energy drinks will slow fluid absorption into the blood and energy system, increasing the possibility of dehydration. The drinks may cause seizures due to the "crash" following the energy high that occurs after drinking the energy drink. Seizures can be serious, causing permanent damage to the brain or even death, although it’s rare. Who would want some kid to have seizures because they thought energy drinks were good? I certainly don’t.
Not all sports drinks are bad. In fact most aren’t when drank in moderate amounts. The problem is that most people think that if a little is good a lot will be great. But that’s not the case. People under 18 won’t