VIDEO: Energy Drinks Not For Kids
Do you know that sometimes caffeine does not have to be listed on labels in Canada? Are you aware of how much caffeine is contained in your or your children’s energy drink?
According to Dr. Richard Haber, director of the Pediatric Consultation Centre, children under the age of 12 should not be consuming energy drinks, and teens should be strongly encouraged to limit their intake of the sugary beverages. However, many teenagers are always attracted by the slick packaging of energy drink.
Recently Health Canada has received several reports about cardiac events of students which linked to energy drinks. Dr. Hébert, who is a critical care physician, says that acute caffeine intoxication can cause a multitude of symptoms. According to the fact, energy drink companies should make it clear for customers that how much caffeine is added to their drink and it is not healthy for young teenagers to drink energy drink. But actually, most energy drink do not has any reminder on their brand about this, which they should do to protect their customers’ health.
From the perspective of business ethics, not only energy drink, companies should remind customers what ingredients do they have in their products and what kind of customers are suitable for their products. Energy drink could also write reminder on their labels and have a more clearly target market.
Resourse:
Energy Drinks: The Fact Behind Fizz, McGill University Health Centre, Oct 9, 2012,
http://muhc.ca/newsroom/article/energy-drinks-facts-behind-fizz
Video: Energy Drinks Not For Kids, YouTube, Jul 21, 2011,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VJXnoeeKnBQ
I agree with you opinion. Indeed children and youth should not take too much energy drinking, since the obesity rate in Canada is gradually getting higher and sugary beverages definitely is a reason of it. Moreover, some energy drinking companies hire ingredients of their products from consumers, hence consumers are fooled and they are not able to capture a clear idea whether the product they buy is suitable for them. setting a regulation for drinking companies to expose all ingredients to their consumers should be an effective action to protect consumers health.
A company must display warnings for energy drinks on their brands to protect the child from unexpected health issues. It is the business ethics to safeguard children’s interest by warning message on the brand.