3 September 2025
The government will consult on banning the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to under-16s in England due to negative impacts on children's physical and mental health.
In response to this announcement Professor Steve Turner, President of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, said:
Paediatricians are very clear that children or teenagers do not need energy drinks. Young people get their energy from sleep, a healthy balanced diet, regular exercise and meaningful connection with family and friends. There’s no evidence that caffeine or other stimulants in these products offer any nutritional or developmental benefit, in fact growing research points to serious risks for behaviour and mental health. Banning the sale of these products to under-16s is the next logical step in making the diet of our nation’s children more healthy.