Energy drinks may boost head trauma

Could impede recovery if a teen sustains traumatic brain injuries

TORONTO: Teenagers who consume energy drinks are more likely to sustain traumatic brain injuries (TBI), new research suggests.

“We have found a link between increased brain injuries and consumption of energy drinks or energy drinks mixed with alcohol,” said Michael Cusimano, neurosurgeon at St Michael’s Hospital in Ontario, Canada.

Teenagers, who reported a traumatic brain injury in the past year, were seven times more likely to have consumed a lot of energy drinks than those without a history of serious brain injury, the findings showed.

Read: Energy drinks linked to serious head injury in teens

“It is particularly concerning to see that teens who report a recent TBI are also twice as likely to report consuming energy drinks mixed with alcohol,” noted Robert Mann, senior scientist at Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto.

For the study, researchers analysed information from a survey of more than 10,000 students between the ages of 11 and 20 in Ontario in 2013. However, they don’t know whether energy-drink consumption leads to brain injuries or if it is the other way around.

Read: Energy drinks bad for youngsters' heart

It is possible that people who consume energy drinks also have other underlying factors that predispose them to experiencing a TBI, the researchers said. For instance, these individuals could have a personality type that tends to take risks, Live Science reported.

The study also cautioned that energy-drink consumption could interfere with recovery efforts for teens who have sustained a TBI. “Energy drinks contain high levels of caffeine changing the chemical state of the body, which can prevent people from getting back on track after a TBI,” Cusimano said.

The study was published in the journal PLOS ONE. 

Published in The Express Tribune, September 22^nd, 2015.

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