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Committee on Children; an ACT PROHIBITING the SALE OF Committee on Children JOINT FAVORABLE REPORT Bill No.: HB-5141 AN ACT PROHIBITING THE SALE OF ENERGY DRINKS TO PERSONS Title: UNDER SIXTEEN YEARS OF AGE. Vote Date: 3/10/2020 Vote Action: Joint Favorable Substitute PH Date: 3/3/2020 File No.: Disclaimer: The following JOINT FAVORABLE Report is prepared for the benefit of the members of the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and does not represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. SPONSORS OF BILL: Committee on Children REASONS FOR BILL: The reason for this bill is to prohibit the sale or purchase of energy drinks to people under the age of 16 years old. Substitute language changes the age to 18. RESPONSE FROM ADMINISTRATION/AGENCY: None expressed. NATURE AND SOURCES OF SUPPORT: Heidi Cripe This bill is in support. Heidi lost her son to energy drinks back in 2017. He son consumed a legal energy drink which lead to him having a cardiac arrhythmia. This bill will immediately prevent children from purchasing these beverages. This step alone will save lives starting the day it is enacted. It will remove these drinks from vending machines, further restricting access for our youth. It will help stop the crawl of making everything an energy drink. For example, they are now offering Energy Drink Juices and Sonic is selling Red Bull slushies. This bill is supported because the new law itself will be the best educational tool we could create. Labeling isn't effective with teens, commercials won't work, seminars won't work, as long as teenagers are bombarded with marketing about how 'cool' these drinks are and as long as they can legally purchase them, they will think there is no danger. An example of this – on a recent news story regarding the proposed bill in South Carolina a young man was asked what he thought about the potential law and he said, “I'm not sure why they have to do that, it's the same as soda”. People just don't know. If minors cannot purchase them then they will realize there is a danger- there is a difference between soda. Because soda is regulated, energy drinks are not. It will also educate the parents and grandparents. I would bet it's safe to say that practically everyone realizes alcohol and tobacco are dangerous. Many choose to still use them, but they go into it knowing the dangers, due in part to the age restrictions. This bill will not only save our children, but it will educate them and the rest of the public on the dangers associated with consuming them. Sean Cripe This bill is supported. It is noted that there should be no comparison with coffee. Yes, Energy drinks have high levels of caffeine like coffee, but is the herbal ingredients that act as additional stimulants in an energy drink. It is the herbal ingredients that give an energy drink it's 'energy'. A 2013 report from the Drug Abuse Warning Network shows that ER visits almost doubled from 2007 to 2011 with almost 21,000 people going to the emergency room in 2011 from energy drinks. Think about that – almost 21,000 people went to the emergency room in one year. Almost 1500 of them children between the ages of 12-17. What makes this important is that this report was the last official report that examined these stats. Without any additional federal reports there is only one main way the FDA learns of a problem and that is if the person that was hurt, takes the time to contact the CDC or go to the FDA's web site and fill out the complicated form. Deanna Chuka, Vice Principal, City Hill Middle School This bill is supported. Based on a survey distributed to 48 towns in Connecticut, the realm of the survey was to obtain the thoughts of parents on child energy drink consumption, responses showed the following. 60% said they either have somewhat of an idea/not sure or no idea of the effects of energy drinks on the human body. 93% believe that energy drink companies are targeting children/teens with packaging and advertising. 96% said they would be upset to learn that their child consumed an energy drink. 96% said they would encourage their legislator to support the passing of this bill. A second survey was completed centered around popular energy drinks and markets unwilling to make commitments to protect adolescents. Although the American Beverage Association and its members previously committed to not market energy drinks as sports drinks, three energy drink companies who are ABA members, such as Monster, Rockstar and Coca Cola, have caffeinated products marketed for rehydration or with electrolytes, like marketing of sports drinks. This marketing could cause confusion and lead consumers to consume large quantities for rehydration while unwittingly receiving large doses of caffeine. Overall, four out of 12 responding energy drink companies, such as Dr. Pepper Snapple, Red Bull, Monster, and Rockstar, demonstrated significant gaps in making commitments to protect adolescents from targeted marketing campaigns. These four companies represent approximately 90 percent of US energy drink sales. Four other energy drink companies, like Arizona, Celsius, XYIENCE, and SK Energy, demonstrated high commitments to policies that would protect adolescents from potentially harmful advertising messages and promote informed use. Sally Mancini, Director of Advocacy Resources, UConn Rudd Center for Food Policy Page 2 of 5 HB-5141 This bill is supported based on the Rudd Center’s mission of promoting solutions to childhood obesity, poor diet, and weight bias through research and policy. Researchers have demonstrated that the high amounts of caffeine, together with other stimulants in energy drinks, lead to serious health effects, such as seizures, diabetes, and cardiac abnormalities, especially in children, adolescents, and young adults. The total caffeine content in energy drink products typically ranges from 68 to 160 mg in a 16-oz energy drink and 113 to 200 mg in a 2-oz energy shot (e.g., 5-hour energy); whereas most caffeinated sodas only contain approximately 35 mg of caffeine per 12-oz container. Research conducted by the UConn Rudd Center, in conjunction with our Sugary Drink FACTS 2014 report, found that in 2013, preschoolers, children and teens saw more advertising for 5-hour energy than for any other single brand, and Red Bull ranked sixth in TV advertising to children and fourth for teens. While 5-hour Energy reduced its advertising spending in 2013 versus 2010, Red Bull increased advertising spending by 84% and TV advertising to youth by 59% or more. Further, both companies appeared to target their TV advertising to a teen audience, as teens saw 20% to 30% more of these ads compared with adults. On the internet, energy drink websites were among the most popular sites in our analysis for children and teens. 5HourEnergy.com was visited by twice as many teens compared with all other beverage company websites and ranked second in visits by children. Child and teen visitors to the site increased by 600% and almost 800%, respectively, from 2010 to 2013. The following revision is recommended to the language. In order to cover all aspect of energy products, the Rudd Center thinks that the Committee should change the definition to include energy shots. Eileen Mezzo, Principal, City Hill Middle School This bill is supported. City Hill Middle School, over the last year, has completed research surrounding energy drinks being sold to those under the age of 16. They shed light on the precedent that energy drink companies want to make money off of children who don’t realize how dangerous these drinks can be. They explain that energy drink companies consider minor children to be 12 and under and that these companies claim that they do not market to children. This testimony points out that society has seen Red Bull drinks with Pac Man and Superheroes like Superman and Wonder Woman on them. They also sponsor young athletes like skateboarders CJ Collins and Jagger Eaton. Rockstar Energy Drink has sponsored an event where 4th graders help them build a BMX park. In 2011, there were 20,783 reported emergency room visits in which energy drinks were the primary cause of or contributing factor to health problems. Not only have there been hospitalizations, but also many deaths associated with these detrimental drinks. It’s bad enough that it happens to adults, but even more concerning when it happens to children. In May 2011, researchers from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) said energy drinks "are never appropriate for children and adolescents," saying caffeine in children has been linked to harmful effects on the developing neurologic and cardiovascular systems. Kate Samela and Donna Barnett, Pediatric Registered Dietitians in the Department of Digestive Diseases, Hepatology and Nutrition, CT Children’s Medical Center This bill is supported. Energy drink consumption grows worldwide annually, and accounts for revenue estimates of more than $10 billion/year. These products vary in size and composition, and lack regulatory oversight. Moreover, manufacturers market aggressively to vulnerable and impressionable youth. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children and adolescents never consume energy drinks as they may pose risk for serious adverse health outcomes. Energy drinks are composed of large quantities of caffeine in Page 3 of 5 HB-5141 addition to other stimulant ingredients such as yerba mate, taurine, guarana, ginseng, L- carnitine, etc. An 8 oz cup of coffee generally contains 95 mg caffeine per serving. Energy drinks vary in size, composition, and stimulant content. They typically range in size from 2 to 16 oz, and from 70 to 240 mg/caffeine per container which does not account for additional stimulant effects.
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