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House calls for more attention to dangers of energy drinks

Resolution calls for physicians to increase screening for energy drink consumption.

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A patient that Geraldine N. Urse, DO, saw in her practice inspired her to draft a resolution urging awareness of the health risks of energy drinks. Dr. Urse’s patient had a 6-year-old child with an energy drink in his hand in the doctor’s office, said Dr. Urse, who practices family medicine in Grove City, Ohio.

“Mom gave him the energy drink to have him be quiet during their time at the doctor,” Dr. Urse said. “And the amount of additives and caffeine that are contained in these drinks is just enormous. It’s led me to look more into the effects of consumption of those energy drinks and what kind of impact it has on our society.”

The AOA House of Delegates passed Dr. Urse’s resolution today, making official the AOA’s support of education on the effects and potential dangers of energy drinks. The resolution, submitted by the Ohio Osteopathic Association, encourages physicians to boost screening for energy drink consumption.

“One of the charges we have as osteopathic physicians is to make sure we watch over the safety of our patients in their daily lives and the activities that they do,” Dr. Urse said. “We also have a responsibility to take a position on substances that are proven to be harmful to our patients.”

U.S. sales of energy drinks in 2012 topped $12.5 billion, Yahoo! Finance has reported. The drinks contain varying amounts of caffeine—from about 80 mg to more than 500 mg, or up to five times the amount found in a cup of coffee. Energy drinks also typically contain large amounts of sugar and additives such as taurine, creatine and guarana. The federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reports that emergency room visits involving energy drinks doubled between 2007 and 2011.

Dr. Urse said she hopes increased awareness will lead to more physicians asking patients not only about consumption of caffeine and soda but also energy drinks.

“When we look at patients who come in with subtle complaints such as headaches and migraines, we always tell them to watch their caffeine intake,” she said. “If the only caffeine we’re looking at is that contained in their morning cup of coffee or the soda that they drink in the middle of the afternoon, we may totally miss the fact that they are doing two or three energy shots during the day.”

Physicians should also know the health problems associated with energy drinks such as increased heart rate, palpitations and seizure activity, as well as the popularity and dangers of mixing energy drinks with alcohol, Dr. Urse said.

“Energy drinks tend to blunt the depressive effects of alcohol, so that people don’t realize how drunk they really are,” she said. “They’ll continue to drink. They may feel like they can handle driving a car, even though they are severely impaired.”

The lack of regulations on energy drinks in the U.S. points to a need for a resolution such as this, said Renee Sarno, OMS II, when she spoke at a student caucus on Wednesday night.

“This resolution moves to increase education and awareness on just how dangerous energy drinks can be,” said Sarno, who attends the Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine-Bradenton in Florida. “And it also is in line with recent initiatives in certain states to keep the public aware of what’s in our food, such as labeling the calorie content of the food in restaurants.”

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