Galicia will not allow the sale and supply of energy drinks to minors and will equate them to alcohol. This is one of the measures that the Galicia Law for the Prevention of Addictions in Minors will carry with it, which is in the final stages.
Once the law is approved, it will not be permitted to specifically advertise this type of products to children. Furthermore, in sales establishments, energy drinks may not appear next to soft drinks. “We also focus on advertising and sponsorships” of this type of products, which will be limited according to what the Health Ministry says.
With this new rule, according to the department, “the Xunta wants to go further by also taking measures to restrict minors’ access to electronic cigarettes or energy drinks.” In addition, it will have “zero tolerance” with the bottle.
This was also highlighted by the president of the Xunta de Galicia, Alfonso Rueda, in his speech during the Debate on the State of Autonomy in what was his first intervention as the highest regional leader.
The 2021 survey on drug use in secondary education -ESTUDES- indicates that 40.4% of students aged 14 to 18 in Galicia had consumed these types of drinks in the last month with respect to the publication of the study. This figure is almost 5 points less than what was registered at the national level, 45.0%.
Compared to 2018 data, in this last measurement you can see an extension in consumption of almost 10 points -30.8% in the previous one-. The survey also indicates that energy drinks have a higher prevalence among boys. At the national level these represent 50.7% compared to 39% of girls who say they have had these types of drinks -49.6 and 31.2% respectively in the case of Galicia.
Mixing them with alcohol, a “growing phenomenon”
On the other hand, according to the annual report of the Spanish Observatory on Drugs and Addictions released by the Ministry of Health in 2022, 16.1% of young Spaniards mix this type of drink with alcohol.
As explained by the doctor in Clinical Medicine and Public Health, Naomi Cano Ibáñez, mixing energy drinks and alcohol in the young population constitutes “a growing and perpetuated phenomenon in the population” that teaches “addictive behaviours.”
The doctor clarifies that these drinks “are psychostimulant substances that are reminiscent of the stimulating effects of cocaine and the euphoric effects of alcohol.” Likewise, the specialist in medical nutrition, Rodrigo Fernández, also confirms that these products carry “risk of addiction, like any ultra-processed drink.”
For its part, the Ministry of Health itself highlights that the consumption of this type of beverage in adolescents “can cause sleep disturbances, nervousness, irritability and anxiety, as well as cardiovascular disorders.”
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