Energy drinks available in Ireland: A description of caffeine and sugar content

Laura Keaver, Susannah Gilpin, Joana Caldeira Fernandes Da Silva, Claire Buckley, Cliodhna Foley-Nolan

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Objective To describe the caffeine and sugar content of all energy drinks available on the island of Ireland. Design Two retail outlets were selected from each of: multinational, convenience and discount stores in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, and all available single-serve energy drinks were purchased. The cross-sectional survey was conducted in February 2015 and brand name, price, volume, caffeine and sugar content were recorded for each product. Descriptive analysis was performed. Results Seventy-eight products were identified on the island of Ireland (regular, n 59; diet/sugar-free/light, n 19). Caffeine and sugar content was in the range of 14-35 mg and 2·9-15·6 g per 100 ml, respectively. Mean caffeine content of 102·2 mg per serving represents 25·6 % of the maximum intake advised for adults by the European Food Safety Authority. Per serving, mean sugar content of regular energy drinks was 37 g. This exceeds WHO recommendations for maximum daily sugar intake of <5 % of total energy intake (25 g for adults consuming 8368 kJ (2000 kcal) diet). If displaying front-of-pack labelling, fifty-seven of the fifty-nine regular energy drinks would receive a Food Standards Agency 'red' colour-coded label for sugar. Conclusions Energy drinks are freely available on the island of Ireland and all products surveyed can be defined as highly caffeinated products. This has potential health issues particularly for children and adolescents where safe limits of caffeine have not been determined. Energy drinks surveyed also contained high levels of sugar and could potentially contribute to weight gain and adverse dental health effects.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1534-1539
Number of pages6
JournalPublic Health Nutrition
Volume20
Issue number9
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jun 2017

Keywords

  • Energy drinks
  • Island of Ireland
  • Obesity
  • Sugar

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Energy drinks available in Ireland: A description of caffeine and sugar content'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this