The Increasing Popularity and Affects of Alcohol Mixed with Energy Drinks (amed) Among University Students; a Cause for Concern?

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alcohol and energy drinks. The information for this paper was attained at a time frame of several weeks before the proposal paper was due (October 15, 2015), until a week before the term paper was due (November 26, 2015). The data collected covers the last 18 years, since energy drinks hit the market in North America.

3. Review of the Evidence

Evidence has detailed that energy drink use is becoming increasingly common among university students even without alcohol; but a more concerning fact, is that its popularity is also increasing in combination of alcohol. The persuasive, ever-daunting business of energy drink production is a massive, multibillion-dollar industry. There are hundreds of different brands on the market, including these well known and popular brands - Amp, Kickstart, Rockstar Energy, and Monster, that aggressively target teens and young adults through social media outlets and advertisements, sponsorships, and branding throughout extreme sports. It isn't difficult to see why 31% of young teens and 34% to 51% of 18 to 24 year-olds report regular consumption of these products (O’Brien et al, 2008), largely due in part to the intense campaign for these companies to present these beverages as 'cool' and and as 'energetic'.

As the energy drink industry grows, so does the consumption of alcohol mixed with energy drinks (AMED). In a survey of college students, 56% reported mixing energy drinks with alcohol in just the last 30 days (Holland & Rohsenow, 2013).

There are many unique ways to consume alcohol mixed with energy drinks. Some of the popular choices include 'exciting' cocktails served at bars (eg, Red Bull and vodka, Jagerbomb), premixed caffeinated alcoholic beverages (eg, Four Loko, TILT), Self-mixed beverages, as well as alcohol and energy drinks independently consumed in the same drinking occasion (Howland & Rohsenow, 2013). Access to these drinks are everywhere and although alcohol has an age enforced law (only those between 18-21 - depending on location may be legal to purchase alcohol), there is no law restraining energy drink purchase.

There are many, and frequent, common adverse side effects caused by energy drink contents. The most common one, caffeine, produces side effects such as nausea, heart palpitations, headache, insomnia, anxiety, irritability, seizure, and hallucinations. Guarana, being the second most common ingredient in energy drinks, can cause insomnia; much like caffeine, but it can also constitute nervousness, restlessness, tachycardia, tremors, anxiety, as well as chest pain. Most caffeinated drinks on the market, including energy drinks, contain high amounts of refined sugars (sucrose, glucose, fructose, corn syrup, as well as others), which can lead to dental erosions, cavities, diabetes (as well as insulin spikes), and obesity. Ginseng, another common component, can cause insomnia, breast tenderness, vaginal bleedings, tachycardia, heart palpitations, hypertension, edema, headaches, vertigo, euphoria, and mania. Finally, the ingredient "bitter orange extract", can cause myocardial infarction, stroke, seizure, hypertension, photosensitivity, dysrhythmias, migraine, and headaches (Rath, 2012). Needless to say, energy drinks, especially in high or over consumption, can be extremely detrimental for a persons health.

Health risks are further amplified when energy drink consumption is combined with alcohol. (Clausen et al., 2008) Consumption is found to mask symptoms such as headache, dry mouth, weakness and incoordination and can lead people to not fully understand and acknowledge their intoxication. This poses a high risk for consumers to receive alcohol related injuries and induce excessive intoxication (Clausen et al. 2008). One study suggested that students under this combinations influence, had an inability to acknowledge their own intoxication but also fail to recognize and acknowledge the intoxication of someone else, which has predicted that students, under these conditions, were twice as likely to enter a motor vehicle being driven by someone under the influence of alcohol (O’Brien et al, 2008).

In addition to the inability of acknowledging personal intoxication, as well as that of someone elses, several studies report that alcohol mixed with energy drinks can lead to reduced control over sexual desires compared to only alcohol alone. Along with this reduced control, consumers of alcohol mixed with energy drinks were also found more likely to use other illicit drugs, including marijuana, cocaine, and ecstasy (Marczinski & Fillmore, 2014).

4. Discussion

Bars and restaurants have a huge impact on the availability of energy drinks, which coincidently fuels the metaphorical fire on the epidemic of alcohol mixed energy drinks in university students. The more they promote and sell energy drinks, the more potential there is for the abuse of the combination. To decrease the abuse of alcohol mixed with energy drinks, it is imperative that bars and restaurants are informed of the risks that may occur when serving such cocktails. Providing an alternative with lower caffeine levels such as soda pop will reduce their risk. This will also help reduce the availability and popularity of mixing alcohol with energy drinks. An interesting proposal for further research would be to examine the alcohol related injuries and there causes if energy drinks were no longer available in bars and restaurants.

Another way to lessen the abuse of alcohol mixed with energy drinks is to establish education systems for students of all ages, parents, and suppliers. This will create a better understanding of the risks associated with the consumption of alcohol and energy drinks. These education systems should be aimed at university students due to the fact that they are at the high risk at abusing alcohol mixed energy drinks but it should also be aimed at younger teens and there parents due to the fact that it might be possible to stop or lessen the consumption of energy drinks which could lead to a decreased desire to consume them with alcohol once they are in university. Another proposal for further research could be to examine the affects of energy drinks on teens and determine whether an age restriction should be set by Health Canada.

The biggest underlying problem is the energy drink companies themselves. Red Bull claims they are natural health product, however, a large majority of consumers don’t know or understand what the active ingredients even are, why they are used in creation of energy drinks, and what there adverse effects consist of. The effects of consuming an energy drink is relatively unknown to individuals who have not