An Analysis of Consumption Patterns of High-Caffeinated Energy Drinks and Adverse Effects by Surveys from Students at Middle and High Schools in Korea

국내 중고등학생들의 고카페인 에너지음료 소비패턴 및 부작용에 대한 분석

High Caffeinated Energy Drink (HCED) consumption among adolescents has been exponentially increasing. The intake of HCED may cause various side effects. However, studies regarding intake of HCED in adolescents have been rarely implemented in Korea. The purpose of this study was to investigate HCED consumption patterns among adolescents and prevalence of adverse effects from HCED consumption and to compare them between middle and high school students. The self-reported questionnaire with 31 questions was used to evaluate HCED consumption patterns and adverse effects. Among 792 students, 455 who had drunken HCED were included in the analysis. Nine (4.0%) Middle School Students (MSSs) and 11 (4.8%) High School Students (HSSs) responded that they did not know HCED, and 188 (83.6%) MSSs and 221 (96.1%) HSSs had heard that HCED contains high amount of caffeine. Seventy-four (36.8%) MSSs drank their first HCEDs from curiosity and 63 (31.3%) MSSs to stay awake while studying. However, 134 (61.2%) HSSs consumed their first HCEDs to keep awake while studying, and 57 (26.0%) HSSs from curiosity. Twenty-eight (12.5%) MSSs and 46 (20.3%) HSSs had increase in heart rate, 52 (23.2%) MSSs and 83 (36.4%) HSSs insomnia, and 8 (3.6%) MSSs and 18 (7.9%) HSSs hand and facial tremor. As shown in this study, HCED consumption among adolescents in Korea was high. Thus, Korean government should continuously focus its efforts to educate not only children and adolescents but also their parents for HCEDs in order to increase parents' awareness of HCEDs and conduct education regarding HCED intake at home above all.