The European Food Safety Authority (ESFA) has opened a public consultation on a draft scientific opinion finding that “single doses of caffeine up to 200 mg and daily intakes of up to 400 mg do not raise safety concerns for adults.” Authored by EFSA’s Nutrition Unit, the draft opinion also concludes that (i) “it is unlikely that caffeine interacts adversely with other constituents of ‘energy drinks’—such as taurine and D-glucurono-γ-lactone—or alcohol”; (ii) “for pregnant women, caffeine intakes of up to 200mg a day do not raise safety concerns for the fetus”; (iii) “for children (3-10 years) and adolescents (10-18 years), daily intakes of 3mg per kg of body weight are considered safe”; and (iv) “single doses of 100mg may increase sleep latency (the amount of time it takes to fall asleep) and shorten sleeping time in some adults.” EFSA has requested comments by March 15, 2015. See EFSA News Release,…
Tag Archives energy drinks
Finding flaws in a lower court’s likelihood of confusion analysis, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has vacated the denial of an injunction sought by Pom Wonderful that would block the sale of Pur Beverages’ “pur pom” energy drink. Pom Wonderful v. Hubbard, No. 14-55253 (9th Cir., order entered December 30, 2014). Pom Wonderful sued Pur to prevent Pur from using the name “pur pom” based on a claim of trademark infringement, but a California federal court denied Pom Wonderful’s motion for preliminary injunction, finding that Pom likely would not prevail because of distinct visual features on the products. The Ninth Circuit disagreed; it found significant similarities between the “POM” mark owned by Pom and the “pom” used by Pur, including a stylized “o” in each. “POM” and “pom” also sound the same and both refer to pomegranate flavoring or ingredients, the court noted. “Balancing the marks’ many visual similarities,…
A study of national poison control center data has reported that public and health care providers filed 5,156 incidents of energy drink exposure between October 2010 and September 2013, with 40 percent of cases involving children younger than age 6. Presented at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions 2014, the new research warned that among cases with major outcomes, “cardiovascular effects (including an abnormal heart rhythm and conduction abnormalities) were reported in 57 percent of cases, and neurologic effects (seizures, including status epilepticus) in 55 percent.” The study also identified moderate or major health outcomes in 42 percent of cases involving energy drinks mixed with alcohol and 19 percent of cases involving alcohol-free energy drinks. Based on these findings, the researchers have evidently called for additional labeling to educate consumers about “energy drinks’ high caffeine content and subsequent health consequences.” “The reported data probably represent the tip of the iceberg,” said…
The Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity has published Sugary Drink FACTS 2014, a report funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation that targets trends in beverage advertising to children. Claiming that companies spent $866 million on advertising for sugar sweetened beverages (SSBs) in 2013, the report argues that even though youth-oriented TV programs and websites showed fewer SSB ads in 2013 than in 2010, the advertising available “is still overwhelmingly for unhealthy drinks.” The authors point out that as SSB advertising on children’s websites declined by 72 percent, “the popularity of energy drinks and regular soda brands on social media increased exponentially from 2011 to 2014.” According to the report, energy drink and regular soda brands now represent 84 percent of the 300 million Facebook likes for the brands included in the analysis, 89 percent of 11 million Twitter followers, and 95 percent of 1.8 billion YouTube views. In…
World Health Organization (WHO) researchers recently published an analysis of energy drink consumption in Europe that takes into account relevant scientific literature published through June 2014. Joao Breda, et al., “Energy drink consumption in Europe: a review of the risks, adverse health effects, and policy options to respond,” Frontiers in Public Health, October 2014. Noting that most adverse events associated with energy drink consumption are caffeine-related, the study reports that some energy drinks contain “extreme caffeine levels much higher than mainstream brands as they try to establish themselves in the market.” “Consumption of energy drinks among adolescents is associated with other potentially negative health and behavioral outcomes such as sensation seeking, use of tobacco and other harmful substances, and binge drinking and is associated with a greater risk for depression and injuries that require medical treatment,” suggest the study’s authors. “There is an increasing amount of research linking energy drink…
Recent legislation (S.B. 2718) introduced by U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.) has called for energy drink guidelines as part of a wider initiative to ensure children’s safety in athletics. According to a September 8, 2014, press release, the Supporting Athletes, Families and Educators to Protect the Lives of Athletic Youth Act (SAFE PLAY Act) combines previous legislative efforts to address “concussions, cardiac arrests, heat-related illness, and consumption of energy drinks.” The bill would require the Department of Health and Human Services, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to (i) “develop information about the ingredients used in energy drinks and the potential side effects of energy drink consumption,” and (ii) “recommend guidelines for the safe use of energy drink consumption by youth, including youth participating in athletic activities.” Although the proposed guidelines would cover all liquid dietary supplements and…
The state attorneys general (AGs) of Oregon, Vermont and Washington have reportedly filed separate lawsuits against Living Essentials and its parent Innovation Ventures seeking a permanent injunction to stop allegedly misleading and deceptive advertising for 5-hour ENERGY®. According to news sources, other state AGs are expected to bring similar action; some 30 have been investigating the accuracy of company ads for the product. Washington AG Bob Ferguson has alleged that the defendants violated the state consumer protection statute by (i) airing TV commercials with “survey results” from doctors who “recommend” the product “while misrepresenting survey results and failing to disclose key facts”; (ii) using a misleading “no sugar crash” product tagline given studies demonstrating a caffeine crash; (iii) implying that the product can be consumed by teens with the label statement, “Do not take if you are pregnant or nursing, or under 12 years of age”; and (iv) claiming that the…
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has submitted a letter to U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Margaret Hamburg requesting that FDA require that “all beverages consumed in a soda-like manner, including energy drinks, comply with the same regulations that limit caffeine in ‘cola-type beverages’” and that energy drinks carry warning labels that alert consumers of possible adverse reactions like convulsions or heart attacks. The letter details information obtained from FDA about adverse events related to energy drinks from 2004 to 2014, including heart failure, disability and miscarriage. CSPI also warns that energy drinks are heavily marketed to children and teens, and rates of usage among those groups are high—the letter cites a study finding that approximately 30 to 50 percent of children, adolescents and young adults reported consuming more than one energy drink per month. The consumer group further presses FDA to issue a public…
Maryland lawmakers have proposed legislation (H.B. 1273) that would prohibit the sale of energy drinks to youth younger than age 18. Defining energy drink as a “beverage, an energy shot, or a powdered drink mix that contains 71 milligrams or more of caffeine per 12-ounce serving and the ingredients taurine, guarana, panax ginseng, inositol, or L-Carnitine in any amount,” the bill would also prohibit minors from possessing such drinks and prohibit their sale in vending machines. In a related development, Maryland lawmakers have also proposed legislation (H.B. 1255) that would prohibit the inclusion of “any beverage other than bottled water or low-fat milk in a fixed-priced children’s menu or meal.” See BaltimoreCBSLocal.com, March 7, 2014. Issue 517
Saudi Arabia authorities have reportedly prohibited the sale of energy drinks at all government, education, sports, and health facilities and outlawed all forms of advertising, including the sponsorship of any sporting, social or cultural events by energy drink companies. Expected to significantly affect what industry experts cite as one of the world’s top 10 markets for energy drinks, the action follows a recent Interior Ministry study highlighting the purported “adverse effects of energy drinks.” The ban on advertisements and promotions includes all print, audio and visual media, and the new regulations will require companies to put health warning labels on energy drink products. See Alarabiya.net, March 5, 2014.
