Energy drinks ban for u16s welcomed by parents and HSC

Friday 09 March 2018

Parents and health officials have welcomed moves by supermarkets in Guernsey to implement a voluntary ban on the sale of energy drinks to children aged under 16.

The Channel Islands Co-op, Waitrose and Alliance have all said anyone over 16 will need ID to buy the drinks now if they don't look old enough, after the introduction of the voluntary bans this week.

Parent, Chelsay Hurley told Express she welcomed the news about the ban, saying she thinks there are a number of places which don’t have a problem selling these drinks to young children, her son being one of them:

"Last week I was cleaning my son’s bedroom and I found a big can of Monster and an even larger bottle of Boost, which are both energy drinks. It was upsetting to say the least, especially after all the warnings I had given him, but what was more upsetting was the fact that an adult thought it was appropriate to sell this to a 13yr old boy, it’s shocking!"

Ms Hurley said she knows energy drinks have not only been shown to raise stress levels, increase heart rate and increase blood pressure but are also related to type one diabetes. She believes they can disrupt sleep patterns too.

Ms Hurley said: "Some parents and children may not even be aware of the potential health risks associated with energy drinks due to the way they are marketed, there is no regulation of the marketing of energy drinks targeted at young adults."

She welcomed the voluntary ban locally, adding: "This recent change is in line with most of Britain’s major supermarket chains implementing the same ban to limit the sale of energy drinks containing more than 150mg of caffeine per litre to children. This campaign was started by Teachers, MPs and celebrities and I think we should be doing the same. Last summer I went into Lislet chip shop and some young lads were trying to buy an energy drinks and the lady serving them refused to sell it to them, telling them “they were too young”. This is commendable and well done to that lady, we should all be following her example and pushing for this ban island-wide, our children are being exposed more and more to these serious health risks, it’s time for change!"

Guernsey's Committee for Health and Social Care is also welcoming the ban.

Dr Nicola Brink, the island's Director of Public Health, confirmed that HSC has been in conversation with the Channel Island Co-op, and the other major retailers, asking whether they are going to join the voluntary ban on selling high caffeine drinks to under 16s and said she was very pleased that a number are looking to do so:

"The sale of energy drinks (drinks that are typically non-alcoholic and contain high levels of caffeine and sugar, together with a range of other additives and flavourings) has increased dramatically in the past decade, with an increase of 155% in the UK between 2006 and 2014 according to the Food Research Collaboration - with young people aged 10-18 being the greatest consumers.

"Although energy drinks are frequently marketed and chosen as a way to relieve fatigue and/or improve alertness, research indicates that regular consumption can be linked to type 2 diabetes, gain in weight, insomnia, headaches, irritability, anxiety and, in fact, fatigue."