As a pediatric dentist, meeting younger and older patients on a daily basis, I ever so often encounter in my work teenagers, with excessive daily use of CARBONATED sweet soft drinks and ENERGY-STIMULATING drinks.
According to a study, published in the Journal of Pediatrics these have some extremely serious side effects on juveniles - agitation, trembling, stomach disorders, chest pain, dizziness, seizures, insomnia and even cardiovascular attacks.
The abuse of such beverages also results in PATHOLOGICAL TOOTH WEAR, the tooth enamel erosion makes teeth hypersensitive to hot, cold, sour… some of these drinks are proven to contain 15 teaspoons of sugar!?!? Worn-out teeth reduce the height of the bite, damage esthetics and may result in the early teeth loss.
Energy drinks are soft drinks, presented by manufacturers as providing energy. Their energy-boosting effect is produced by their biologically-active ingredients, caffeine, vitamins and plant extracts - guarana, mate, ginseng, gingko biloba, taurine, inositol, carnitine and high sugar content.
According to unofficial data, approximately 20 % of children between the 5th and 7th grades, drink at least 5 energy drinks every week. And approximately 19 000 000 liters of energy drinks are consumed on an annual basis in Bulgaria.
Their purpose is to invigorate the body and increase working capacity, but very often these cause cardiac problems, liver and kidney damage, obesity, fits, seizures, hyperactivity. It is a known fact that these are not suitable for children, but nevertheless, they can be bought freely in almost all shops near schools.
After I conducted a study, I found out that among girls there is a TREND – losing weight with energy drinks, which reduce the sense of hunger, which is due to the elevated adrenaline and the abundant amounts of sugar or other sweeteners. There are even cases, where children use energy drinks instead of water, which can severely damage their kidneys.
Furthermore, most energy drinks on the market contain no actual fruit juice, but artificial colorants and flavors. You would be horrified, when you find out that the different flavors of some energy drinks are full of toxic chemical colorants. Manufacturers use several food dyes, as one of the most common among them is Red 30, and sometimes it is even found in products that are not colored red. It has been linked to reactions, varying to migraine and headache to outbursts of irritation, dizziness, aggressive behavior, hyperactivity, uncontrollable screaming and weeping, nervousness, kicking, inability of children to stand still and concentrate.
The energy drinks ingredients also include aspartame (Е951), a neurotoxin with metabolic, allergic, and according to some studies – even carcinogenic properties
Another side effect of energy drinks is insomnia, some teenagers – gamers – purposefully seek for this effect, in order to be able to play for longer periods of time and be more focused. Caffeine has an invigorating effect, increases adrenaline levels, which leads to addiction. A cup of coffee contains between 80-120 mg of caffeine, and in different energy drinks it varies in the range 154-505 mg. When larger quantities are taken at once, this results in elevated blood pressure and heartrate, which may result in seizures and hypertension crisis. Studies show that regular users of caffeine stimulants, exhibit lower levels of serotonin – a specific neurotransmitter, also known as the Hormone of Happiness. The depletion of this hormone is linked to bad mood, anxiety and depression.
According to a 2014 study, performed in Bulgaria, regarding the risk factors for the health of Bulgarians, with the participation of 683 school students, among others, half of the high-school students, aged between 14 and 18 years were using energy drinks.
The study further revealed that among youngsters, aged between 14 and 18 years, almost 28% drank energy drinks once to four times a week, and nearly 19% - every day or more than once daily. In Bulgaria, energy drinks are controlled, based on the General Food and Beverages Regulation, and according to Ordinance 37 of the Ministry of Health on healthy nutrition of school students, energy drinks cannot be sold at the canteens, refreshment bars and vending machines at schools, dormitories etc. Globally, the demand and supply of such drinks is increasing… According to some statistics, at places the demand is even higher than that for bottled drinking water. Their sale to persons below the age of 16 was only prohibited in Lithuania and Latvia, and in Germany the idea to impose such a prohibition, could not find enough support!?!?
Here, you can see a photo of a 16-year-old boy, regularly drinking about 1 liter of Coke and 2 Monsters and similar “invigorating” drinks. That young man’s complaints included toothache, sensitivity to hot, cold, as well as when chewing solid food. His enamel has been literally dissolved by the acids and is completely absent, and the dentine is “naked” and unprotected, and that is how it all starts …
Dear parents, raising a teenager is quite a challenge, to say the least, but this is an age, also requiring serious teeth and gum care!
It is difficult, but not impossible, and thus a person of authority is required in juvenile’s life, and this is exactly what a dentist is - a person of authority, giving accurate advice, who is also able to treat without pain and listen, without criticizing.
Trust us!
Yours truly, Dr. Cvety
