Canada must rethink its regulations on caffeinated energy drinks
Ashish explores how we can reduce caffeinated energy drink consumption among young people, arguing current marketing regulations are insufficient.
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Caffeinated energy drinks (CEDs) are a billion-dollar industry that is growing each year. According to one study in Canada, 13–17 year-olds report the highest CED consumption compared to all other age groups. This is particularly concerning given that the adverse health effects associated with these beverages include anxiety, dizziness, gastrointestinal problems, and even seizures.
Due to the risks and growing consumption of CEDs among youth, Health Canada set several marketing regulations aiming to reduce consumption of CEDs among this age group. These included prohibiting the sales of CEDs to children under 12, restricting the marketing of CEDs on TV channels that have a high viewership of children, and reclassifying drinks as food items rather than natural health products. All CEDs are now under the purview of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and require cautionary ‘warning’ labels, caffeine statements, and front of package labelling on health effects. However, CED advertisements are still reaching young people and consumption of CEDs remains high despite the regulations.
Exposure to CED marketing
CED manufacturers continue to heavily market to those between 12–24 years. In Canada, over 80% of this age group have reported seeing at least one CED advertisement—a statistic that is alarming given that teenagers are the most susceptible to high consumption and adverse health consequences.
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Children's exposure to CED marketing has not been much reduced either. Between 2015 to 2016, approximately 54 million food or beverage adverts were viewed on websites, largely visited by children under 12. Of those adverts, 93.4% promoted foods like CEDs. For example, Red Bull was one of the most advertised products on websites such as roblox.com and coolmath-games.com, which are primarily used by children.
Because of the high prevalence of CED advertisements across platforms, children are also at risk of exposure to advertisements aimed at the general population. Marketing ploys used for adults are intentionally designed to appeal to younger age groups too. One teenager stated that "they are trying to attract the attention of young people with the colours and the style of bottles." CED companies also sponsor activities that are favoured by a younger audience like extreme sports: "it's not old people that will go check that out, it's mostly us,” notes one teenager. Due to these marketing tactics, children and young people continue to have a high level of exposure to CED marketing campaigns.
Inadequate educational messaging
The current regulations also remain ineffective at reducing CED consumption due to insufficient educational campaigns that can counterbalance marketing messaging. One study revealed that 68% of participants aged between 12 and 18 have never seen an educational message about the health impacts of CEDs. This suggests that many young people may not have heard of the adverse health effects before purchasing CEDs. Disproportionately high amounts of advertisements promoting CEDs compared to educational messaging means CED consumption is unlikely to decrease among youth.
Another issue is the lack of effective mandates on CED package labelling. Cautionary statements of CEDs were reported to be hard to locate, read, and understand because of the small font and design characteristics. Vague labels result in poor understanding of recommended portions and the adverse effects of overconsumption.
Suggestions for a way forward
Despite these issues, there are viable ways to improve policies to reduce CED use, and in turn, limit the health risks associated with their consumption.
A comprehensive approach would include self-regulation and government-regulated policies, such as caffeine taxes, restriction of sales to minors, and reduction of the visibility of CEDs in retail stores. While current regulations tend to focus on the promotional aspect of food marketing, more emphasis should be put on attitudes to CEDs and the settings where children eat, buy, or learn about food and drinks. A setting-based approach acknowledges the interconnected nature of the socioeconomic environment and an individual’s health decisions.
An example solution would be to educate students on various marketing techniques that companies use to entice users, giving children an understanding of the power of market manipulation. This could be assisted by identifying spaces where most young people buy energy drinks, and tailoring strategies to suit the location. Improving the quality of the labels by using clear and comprehensive messaging would also raise awareness of the health impacts of CEDs.
High exposure to marketing combined with ineffective educational messaging indicates an urgent need to reform regulations towards CEDs. Canada’s current regulations largely target CED marketing and have thus far proved ineffective. Instead, comprehensive statutory regulations that acknowledge the multi-dimensional, interconnected nature of the relationships people have with food are necessary for improving health outcomes.
