School bans energy drinks
Good move from the school or should the teenagers be able to choose what they want to drink?
Headteacher Melvyn Lynch of Forfar Academy in Angus, Scotland has banned the high caffine energy drinks in his school.
Any student seen drinking a can of fizz such as Red Bull, Monster, and Rock Star will now have it confiscated.
The ban came into force this morning with all parents of the school’s roughly 1,200 pupils having received letters to make them aware.
In the letter Mr Lynch sent to parents, he warned of health risks, claiming consumption of the drinks can lead to insomnia, anxiety issues, headaches, nausea, heart palpitations, abdominal pain, Type 2 diabetes and bed-wetting.
The ban come after tougher Government guidelines on the drinks and calls for them not to be sold to under-16s.
Many schools across the country have now started banning the energy drinks after Government advisers warned the products make kids hyperactive and difficult to control.
Melvyn Lynch’s letter stated: “Rather than helping pupils stay alert they can result in young people falling asleep during the day due to problems with sleep at night-time.
“It is our opinion that the drinks are a danger to the health of our young people and that they contain no nutritional benefits.
“In additional to these health risks, we are also extremely concerned about the effect these drinks are having on the behaviour of our young people.
They can cause conflict with staff when pupils are advised that they should not be consuming these drinks in classes.
“We have also had occasions where pupils who have consumed energy drinks have been involved in more serious incidents that have led to exclusion.
“Whilst energy drinks are not solely to blame for this indiscipline, we believe that they are a contributory factor.”
An Angus Council spokesman said: “While a decision on their consumption on school grounds would be a matter for individual schools, we support moves that provide our young people with the relevant information about what they are consuming.”
An NHS Tayside spokeswoman added: “Cutting down on sugary drinks which contain no nutritional benefits is one of the most important ways of reducing sugar intake.”
Do you agree with the ban on energy drinks?
