Should schools ban high-caffeine energy drinks?

According to John Vincent, the author of School Food Plan, energy drinks should be banned from schools. They are causing behavioural problems in the classroom and more children are becoming dependent on consuming huge amounts of caffeine to get them through the day.

Children and teenagers are constantly exposed to the internet and social media through smartphones, tablets, laptops and desktop computers, and this is leading to reduced sleep for many of them. Concentration is badly affected by tiredness at school, with students attempting to combat this by drinking high-caffeine energy drinks.

According to Mr Vincent, a child becomes impossible to teach after drinking a few cans of an energy drink such as Red Bull or Lucozade.

“The short-term high is causing disruption to children’s behaviour. Our objective is to stop children drinking them,” he said.

High-caffeine energy drinks were never intended to be drunk by children and teenagers in school; they were designed to aid sports performance.

Over the last decade, however, such drinks have become a common feature in school playgrounds. Many parents consider them to be no different to other soft drinks; in fact, many people believe they are healthier. Advertising for energy drinks usually focuses on sport and performance, which implies health.

Some schools have already banned energy drinks; however, this is not stopping children from consuming them either before school or during school breaks. The only solution suggested is to limit their sale. Mr Vincent and his colleagues have requested some form of government intervention, although a total ban may have an adverse effect.