![]() ![]() "If parents allow teens to bring energy drinks to schools, that is their decision to make," said spokeswoman Tracey Halliday.įederal law doesn't limit caffeine content or require listing it on labels, said Kimberly Rawlings, a spokeswoman for the Food and Drug Administration.Ī 1958 FDA decision declared foods with 0.02 percent caffeine content to be "generally regarded as safe." The American Beverage Association supports banning the sale of energy drinks at school, but that's it. Kids always think if one is good, more must be better." Further, children do not understand the concept of moderation and caution, which needs to be practiced with energy drinks. "These hormones provide an endless supply of natural energy. "Children have super-high natural hormone levels that assist in physical and mental growth and maturation," Owoc said. The product includes ingredients that can affect body chemistry, including evodiamine, a plant extract that can raise body temperature yohimbine HCL, which can affect blood pressure and 5-hydroxy-L-tryptophan, which can boost levels of mood-altering serotonin in the brain. Labeled "the ultimate energy rush," Redline is one of the few energy drinks that carry a warning against consumption by children. ![]() "Children should derive enough energy from a healthy diet, daily exercise and eight hours or more of sleep." "Energy drinks are made for adults only," he wrote in an e-mail. VPX/Redline CEO Jack Owoc - a former Broward teacher - has offered the district $25,000 toward enacting a ban and says he supports prohibiting minors from buying the drinks. The ban has another key supporter: the chief executive officer of the Davie-based company that makes Redline. Britton said that Joseph can't have Redline and similar drinks at home and that his son thought his friend's drink was Monster, an energy drink not marketed as a weight-loss beverage.īritton supports a ban: "If they say children under 18 shouldn't be drinking them, you shouldn't be able to buy them." Wahlen said energy drinks are "becoming an issue for discussion around the state."Īn attorney for the Tallahassee, Fla.-area Leon County School Board, Wahlen said he is not aware of any bans yet.ĭavie, Fla., parent William Britton said his son Joseph, 14, one of the four Falcon Cove students, quickly recovered after his trip to the hospital. "Banning things that make it difficult for kids to concentrate and study is, I think, clearly in bounds." "Broward is probably on the leading edge of this," said Jeff Wahlen, president of the Florida School Board Attorneys Association. A California government health agency is reviewing whether to require warning labels. Laws banning their sale to minors are under discussion in Kentucky and Idaho, although a similar proposal died recently in Maine. The moves reflect growing national concern over minors' access to the highly popular energy drinks, which 7-Eleven reports are the fastest growing item in its cold-beverage case. The board is working on a warning advisory for parents. ![]() Students already cannot buy the beverages at school in Broward or Miami-Dade County, but they can bring them on campus - as one of the teenagers at Falcon Cove did. "You see something like a 12-year-old drinking one of these, and it's really scary," board member Beverly Gallagher said at a recent meeting.īoard members last week took the first steps toward putting Redline and drinks like it off-limits on campus. ![]() The temporary scare - the students are fine now - has Broward County, Fla., School Board members ready to ban high-octane energy drinks from school campuses. The substance that sent them there was the energy and weight-loss drink Redline, which packs all the caffeine of coffee, and more: Its half-dozen added ingredients are claimed to lift mood and energy levels, lower appetite - even improve memory. MIAMI - Four teenagers from Falcon Cove Middle School in Weston were taken to a hospital emergency room this month, their hearts racing and their bodies dripping with sweat. ![]()
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