Despite not knowing the health risk that
high levels of caffeine pose, the 'energy
shots' are being sold in New Zealand
unregulated.
Image: iStockphoto

For many people, getting through the day without a cup of coffee seems impossible. Caffeine is the most widely use drug in the world and is available in a variety of products, from tea to chocolate. However, the launch of 'energy shots' in New Zealand that contain ten times the standard amount of caffeine per litre is sparking concern, particularly when they're readily available to children.

Usually their high caffeine content would see them banned, but thanks to their classification as a ‘dietary supplement’ the 'energy shots' can be sold unregulated.

While most of the 'energy shots' are labelled as being unsuitable for children, there are concerns that they're primarily being marketed at and sold to adolescents.

"The Herald on Sunday tells the story of a young woman who suffered a heart attack after consuming daily amounts of 10-14 cans of Red Bull a day. The same effect is reached with only 4-5 of Demon's ‘Shots’,” said Dr Jim McVeagh, Auckland GP and author of popular health blog MacDoctor.

According to Dr McVeagh, the ‘energy shots’ will pose a health threat to New Zealand adolescents.

"I have had to deal with a number of cases of teenagers having psychotic episodes following multiple cans of energy drinks. This problem will almost certainly get worse with these types of ‘dietary supplements’. Caffeine in large amounts pushes up your blood pressure and reduces endothelial function dramatically, predisposing people to heart attacks. It is not a benign pick-me-up, nor is it a dietary supplement - it is a stimulant drug, pure and simple”

Caffeine – good or evil?
The debate comes back to the age old argument over whether caffeine is good or bad for you. Studies and researchers have argued both sides of the case, with no definitive answer to the question.

There is plenty of proof that caffeine can improve alertness and save lives, particularly on the roads. But despite the benefits, Dr Elaine Rush, professor of Nutrition at Auckland University of Technology, argues that there are still health consequences to take into account when taken in such high concentrations.

"I am very concerned about the sale of caffeine in large doses. Although caffeine does improve physical performance, convincing evidence is accumulating from comprehensive reviews of the literature that there are more problems than benefits associated with consuming caffeine," she said.

On the other hand, Dr David Jardine, Clinical Director of the Canterbury District Health Board and physician at the Department of General Medicine, University of Otago argues that there is still no definite proof to show that a high level of caffeine will do any harm.

"From what I can see, caffeine is the most used drug in the world and we have no clear idea of how it works. It has been blamed for everything from cardiovascular disease to birth defects but the scientific evidence for chronic consumption being harmful is not there. I know of no bad effects in children and pregnant women, remembering that a caffeine-like drug, theobromine, is in dark chocolate. Humans seem to be able to deal with caffeine very well," he said.

To further complicate the issue, there’s the argument that caffeine will pose a different threat to each individual, which makes a product infinitely more difficult to regulate.

“We must remember that people are divided into two groups by the rate they metabolise caffeine. Some can metabolise it quickly, others are slower, and for them these products must be especially dangerous," said Dr John Birkbeck, Adjunct Professor in Child Nutrition at Massey University.

"I suspect in anyone with a pre-existing condition such as overactive thyroid or some heart defect they could even be lethal,” he added.

Potentially dangerous but unregulated
According to Dr Birkbeck, a serious problem is the fact that despite not knowing whether the shots could be deadly, they’re currently being sold without regulation in New Zealand thanks to their classification as ‘dietary supplements’.

"The category of ‘dietary supplements’ must be abolished. A product must be either a food, or a drug, and dealt with under the relevant legislation,” he said.

While energy drinks could pass as food, the shots would clearly be drugs – and banned due to their lack of safety documents, said Dr Birkbeck.

“The ‘dietary supplement’ industry in this country has been fighting this for decades, as it is a very lucrative market which manages to avoid the constraints even on food producers let alone pharmaceuticals. The sooner this 'grey area' is abolished the better," he added.

Despite all of the controversy, the New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) feels more research needs to be done before any hasty decisions can be made, according to Director Geoff Allen.

"Dietary supplements are something that people can choose to take from time to time if they think they need to. All of the shots that we've seen also have a caffeine advisory statement of some form, even though they're not required to.

"New regulation to restrict sale or supply of these high caffeine energy drinks is not necessarily the whole or the best answer. Firstly, in order to do this there would have to be clear evidence that caffeine is indeed a significant health risk. NZFSA has commissioned an updated risk profile for caffeine to identify any changes in risk that have occurred in the last seven years. We expect this profile to be completed early next year,” said Allen.

While New Zealand - and the world - waits to find out definitively whether caffeine is a health threat, 'energy shots' will continue to be sold. Perhaps as the controversy carries on, the drinks will become the product that helps New Zealand get rid of the ‘dietary supplement’ classification. There is a lot of work to be done by researchers and policy-makers, but hopefully at the end of it consumers will be better protected from, and informed about, products that could harm their health.