Energy
Drinks Linked to Risky Behavior
Source:
United Press International
Over
the last decade, energy drinks -- such as Red Bull, Monster
and Rockstar -- have become nearly ubiquitous on college campuses.
The global market for these types of drinks currently exceeds
$3 billion a year and new products are introduced annually.
Although few researchers
have examined energy drink consumption, a researcher at the
University at Buffalo's Research Institute on Addictions (RIA)
has been investigating links between energy drinks and public
health concerns like substance abuse and risky behaviors.
Two new research reports
by RIA Research Scientist Kathleen E. Miller, Ph.D., examine
the relationships between energy drink consumption and risk-taking
in college students as well as "toxic jock identity"
-- characterized by hyper-masculinity and risk-taking behaviors
among college-age athletes.
Miller's research validates
and expands upon existing concerns about energy drink consumption:
"The principal target demographic for energy drinks is
young adults ages 18-25, but they're nearly as common among
younger teens," she explains. "This is a concern because
energy drinks typically contain three times the caffeine of
a soft drink, and in some cases, up to 10 times as much. They
also include ingredients with potential interactions such as
taurine and other amino acids, massive doses of vitamins, and
plant and herbal extracts."
Miller is a sociologist
and an adjunct research assistant professor in the Department
of Sociology in UB's College of Arts and Sciences. The research
was funded by a $471,000 grant by the National Institute on
Drug Abuse.
In the first set of results
published online in June in the Journal of Adolescent Health,
Miller identified links between energy drink consumption, risky
substance use and sexual risk-taking.
Frequent energy drink consumers (six or more days a month),
according to Miller's findings, were approximately three times
as likely than less-frequent energy drink consumers or non-consumers
to have smoked cigarettes, abused prescription drugs and been
in a serious physical fight in the year prior to the survey.
They reported drinking alcohol,having
alcohol-related problems and using marijuana about twice as
often as non-consumers. They were also more likely to engage
in other forms of risk-taking, including unsafe sex, not using
a seatbelt, participating in an extreme sport and doing something
dangerous on a dare. The associations with smoking, drinking,
alcohol problems and illicit prescription use were found for
white but not African-American students.
A total of 795 Western New
York male and female undergraduate students participated in
the study and 39 percent reported consuming at least one energy
drink in the previous month. There was significantly higher
consumption by men (46 percent) than by women (31 percent) and
higher consumption by whites (40 percent) than by blacks (25
percent).
Eighty-seven percent of
the students in the study were white; 52 percent were male.
Two-thirds of the energy drink consumers in Miller's study had
used energy drinks as mixers with alcoholic beverages. The growing
popularity of this practice further heightens concern, Miller
says.
"It is widely, but
incorrectly, believed that the caffeine in energy drinks counteracts
the effects of alcohol, so students will have the energy to
party all night without getting as drunk," she explains.
"While the combination
may reduce perceptions of intoxication, it does not reduce alcohol-induced
impairments of reaction time or judgment."
According to Miller, these
findings suggest that frequent energy drink consumption may
serve as a useful screening indicator to identify students at
risk for what scientists call "problem behavior syndrome."
"Energy drink consumption
is correlated with substance use, unsafe sexual activity and
several other forms of risk-taking," Miller notes.
"For parents and college
officials, frequent energy drink consumption may be a red flag
or warning sign for identifying a young person at higher risk
for health-compromising behavior.
"Although energy drink
consumption can be used to predict other problem behaviors,
it does not necessarily follow that drinking these substances
is a gateway to more serious health-compromising activities,"
Miller cautions. "It is entirely possible that a common
factor, such as a sensation-seeking personality or involvement
in risk-oriented peer sub-cultures, contributes to both. More
investigation is needed to study these relationships further,
over longer periods of time."
In the second set of results,
published in the March/April issue of the Journal of American
College Health, Miller looked at energy drink consumption and
"toxic jock identity."
"For many people, being an athlete is an important part
of who they are," Miller explains. "Some go a step
farther, though, and come to see themselves as 'jocks.' For
them, sport is wrapped up in a larger identity that also emphasizes
hyper-masculinity and a willingness to take excessive risks."
Unlike an athlete identity, a jock identity can be considered
"toxic," according to Miller, because it's associated
with a wide range of risky or problem behaviors, including problem
drinking, sexual risk-taking, interpersonal violence, academic
misconduct, delinquency and even suicide attempts.
Miller's research found
that undergraduates who consumed energy drinks more often were
also more likely to develop a jock identity and to engage in
risk-taking behaviors. "Ultimately," she says, "undergraduates'
frequent use of Red Bull and other energy drinks should be seen
by peers, parents and college officials as a potential predictor
of 'toxic jock identity.'"
In the wake of several recent
deaths linked to energy drinks, a number of countries have instituted
restrictions on their use. Some, like France, Turkey, Denmark,
Norway, Uruguay and Iceland ban high-caffeine/taurine energy
drinks altogether, Miller notes. Sweden only permits them to
be sold in pharmacies as medicinal products.
Canada, which banned these
drinks until 2004, now requires warning labels cautioning against
use by children or pregnant women, use in large quantities or
use with alcohol. However, energy drink consumption remains
unregulated in the United States.