“Not recommended for young children,” reads the warning on the NRG Phoenix Fury Potato Chip package. Yep, that’s right folks, news reports confirm a new entry in my ‘yougaddabefreakinkiddinme’ marketing file.
Kiddies can now turn their fingertips bright orange like Cheetos, but get zapped with caffeine, B-vitamins and taurine, in new “energy chips” meant for adults that just can’t seem to get enough of a buzz from their Red Bull abuse and Starbuck’s mid-day fix.
Energy drinks have vaulted into the sales stratosphere as a hot ticket item, so it shouldn’t surprise me that extra-spicy BBQ flavored junk food now accompanies the caffeine rush with chips-n-sips fervor.
Yes, I know, the warning label says they’re not for kids, but can you honestly tell me teens and tweens are gonna look the other way on this one? Caffeine is a drug, folks. A legal one, but an addictive one nonetheless. Evidently, Golden Flake snacks, makers of the 3.5 oz bag, claim that “downing the whole thing would be the caffeine equivalent of drinking 3 1/2 big cups of brewed coffee.”
We’ve written time and again about the red-flags for children chugging energy drinks.
In addition to the full pharmacological impact and supplement toxicity of some blended concoctions, (not to mention the QuackWatch on the dietary supplement regulatory policy) the short answer for a kids’ heads up is that excessive caffeine leads to dizziness, nausea and heart palpitations, and can be physically addicting!
Our own Johns Hopkins University nutritional guru, Rebecca Scritchfield is the very one that tipped us off to this weird new productization, so it’s interesting to see news reports cite behavioral biology docs and pros from the same source.
Energy Fiend is always on top of the actual mg/amounts of liquid lifts and caffeine shots with handy comparison charts to sort out hype from reality, and they’re even flummoxed by the product claim vs. 350mg translation too. It’s a disconnect.
As we’ve reported before, from an energy drink health risk standpoint, particularly where teens get ‘spiked’ and children are concerned, we NEED that data.
Is this chip chomping all product hype or is it ingested risk? Tell us!
As it is, energy drinks don’t account for the stimulant ‘boosts’ from the amino acid taurine and guarana on top of the caffeine and sugar, putting kids at higher risk due to lack of label literacy amidst a massive marketing push.
Now parents are supposed to keep an eye on other ‘foods’ to factor in cumulative caffeine intake from candy, yogurt, and now caffeine-infused sunflower seeds and potato chips?
NRG schmenergy.
Is our society really all that fatigued and flaky that we need productization for every possible slump?
How about showing kids some yoga moves to revitalize instead?
It’s free fitness at the ready to destress, flex mental and physical muscles and calm down those little ADHD darlings that our media marketing machine is reinforcing.
Ommmm.
btw, lest you think I’m anti-caffeine, let me add that I know medically the Mayo Clinic actually recommends same for migraines, and there’s research that some KIDS benefit from same as well in the ADHD mode, even…So for all of you e-mailing me instead of blog commenting…again, take it public, folks! This is important ‘been there done that/tried this’ stuff!
Here’s a link to a sample Q&A on how caffeine can BENEFIT ADHD kids in some cases…each has individual caveats…My point here was to address ‘en masse’…
Anyway, here ya go: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_does_caffeine_do_to_an_ADHD_child
And, for the record, Mayo Clinic says “Some studies suggest that high doses of caffeine combined with methylphenidate (Ritalin, Concerta, others) may be more effective in treating attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) than methylphenidate alone. Like methylphenidate, caffeine is a stimulant. However, too much caffeine also can cause insomnia, nervousness, irritability and increased heart rate. Because of their smaller body size, children are even more susceptible to these effects than adults are. For these reasons, most pediatricians discourage caffeine consumption in children. Caffeine is not recommended as a treatment for ADHD in children.”
More ADHD links here: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/adhd/DS00275
Tea, coffee, cola, energy drinks and chocolate share the same nerve toxin (stimulant), caffeine. Caffeine, which is readily released into the blood, triggers a powerful immune response that helps the body to counteract and eliminate this irritant. The toxic irritant stimulates the adrenal glands, and to some extent, the body’s many cells, to release the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol into the blood stream.
If consumption of stimulants continues on a regular basis, however, this natural defense response of the body becomes overused and ineffective. The almost constant secretion of stress hormones, which are highly toxic compounds in and of themselves, eventually alters the blood chemistry and causes damage to the immune system, endocrine, and nervous systems. Future defense responses are weakened, and the body becomes more prone to infections and other ailments.
The boost in energy experienced after drinking a cup of coffee is not a direct result of the caffeine it contains, but of the immune system’s attempt to get rid of it (caffeine) An overexcited and suppressed immune system fails to provide the “energizing” adrenaline and cortisol boost needed to free the body from the acidic nerve toxin, caffeine. At this stage, people say that they are “used” to a stimulant, such as coffee. So they tend to increase intake to feels the “benefits.”
Since the body cells have to sacrifice some of their own water for the removal of the nerve toxin caffeine, regular consumption of coffee, tea, or colas causes them to become dehydrated. For every cup of tea or coffee you drink, the body has to mobilize 2-3 cups of water just to remove the stimulants, a luxury it cannot afford. This applies to soft drinks, medicinal drugs, and any other stimulants, As a rule, all stimulants have a strong dehydrating effect on the bile, blood, and digestive juices.
http://www.CaffeineAwareness.org
Thanks, Sam for the site link! The video clip & interactive calculator is particularly fun; helping to determine how much people ‘really’ consume and such!
Ultimately, moderation is my mindset in most any situation…A soda here and there isn’t going to send a child into body shock of course, and teas in Asia have been savored for over 5000 years w/kids sipping along as well per food facts/Afic.org: http://www.afic.org/MYTHS%20and%20FACTS%20about%20Caffeine.htm
Caffeine as a diuretic/dehydration concern is a given, and as with any media literacy issue, I’m all for raising the information level on all sides of an issue, to sort out myths and facts for adults, and medical implications for kids particularly.
But I’m more than a little concerned about the MARKETING impact on kids’ consumption of caffeine (not to mention the ‘Starbucks craze’ with kids toting coffee cups around) from energy drinks on down…
Caffeine is getting PROMOTED in foods as ENERGY as well as hidden in various food & beverages sans any awareness of same. The misuse/abuse potential for young bodies overdosing from excess is high. After all, this is a drug.
Marketers need to be more responsible in tenaciously targeting teens w/products that can harm…As parents, we’re VERY, very weary of constantly mitigating the damage from media/mktg’s hypefest to battle for our children’s health and well-being.
It’s exhausting! (but no, I DO NOT need an ‘energy boost’ to ‘pick me up’!) 😉
Meh. Meh meh meh. Why is it soooo necessary to pump everything with some sort of stimulant? Meh.
And you’re right– kids are TOTALLY gonna eat this junk. Why? Because it’s on the shelf, or in the cabinet, or in a basket on a party table. Kids weren’t supposed to drink Jolt– but that was our “daring” party drink that we’d giggle over and feel SO grown up & rebellious about. Even the uber-good kids are rebellious (just kinda lame about it, lolz). Now with Starbucks about– I see kids in there ALL THE TIME. 12/13 year olds buying COFFEE & LATTES & MOCHAS oh my! What happened to the “Stunt your growth” fear?
Stunt your growth, bad for your teeth, bad for your skin, etc. Isn’t that right? But never fear– plastic surgery is the “wave of the future” dun dun duuuuunnnnnn… No worries about Caffiene! These silly sub-par, nature-made teeth of ours are EASILY replacable with new handy-man-made chompers of awesomeness. Cavities will be a THING of the past. It will be like a new age right-of-passage. Ageg 13, after all the babyteeth fall out, you get your teeth pulled en masse and replaced with new ones. Bring on the sugar, bring on the junk food, bring on the health problems (scurvy, diabetes, etc), bring on the caffiene, bring on the bad skin, bring on the addictionss, bring on the headaches and mood swings!
Okay, I’m being dramatic, contrary, and pessimistic. Blame it on my lack of second-latte. I’ve only had ONE so far today. Clearly I’m on a caffiene down-ward spiral. Blah. Sadly, I’m being serious. I gave up pop when I was a freshman soccer player in college. Best move ever. Lost extra poundage, felt better, wasn’t so darn tired all the time, etc. Now I’m back on the caffiene (stricty lattes) and craving more (we have the BEST tasting coffee joint down the block).
Ya know… makes me wonder– soon our food will come in pill form– with ALL THE stimulants & additives & faux-flavors easily marketed to the masses.
Oh, Jetsons… I hope life is really as great as you make it seem in that big plastic bubble in the sky…
Amy. You are simply the best.
p.s. These were made specifically targeting Britney Spears and her followers. She feeds those tykes pop & cheetos doesn’t she? Isn’t that the gossip? I even heard a (probably really false, let’s hope) rumor that she asked the dentist to replace Sean P’s cavity-ridden babyteeth and the dr said NO. But, again, that’s just a rumor… a rumor that strikes fear in the heart of moi… god help us if that’s what the next generation thinks!
Fix it with replacement!
blah! meh! Sigh. Now where’s my vitamin filled doritos. I’m feeling munchie….
Oh my. I agree with much of what has already been said, but just want to add that parents are likely to turn the other cheek here as well. It’s very easy to imagine folks thinking, “What’s the hard in some potato chips” especially since on the shelf they will just blend in with the “extreme” marketing gush of junk.
I address kids/media/marketing on my site too, love to have you visit:
http://www.outside-the-toybox.com
First off, re: posts 5 & 6 from Izzy, I think these marketers need to bottle YOUR energy…you percolate like a cup-o-Joe pinging with sardonic wit and verbal slams like I’ve never seen before, wow! You are alive, girl!
And ‘outside the toybox’ welcome to the blogosphere! Looks like you started this summer, perhaps? Feel free to ping me if you’d ever like to add a guest editorial here? I’ll put you in my ‘Google reader’ for sure, many thanks for the heads up on your blog, & invite to visit…I’ll pop by soon!
Thank you Amy! Love to be added to your blogroll and/or reader. I love this blog! Very important work!