Why everyone needs to know about the deadly dangers of energy drinks

UK industry guidelines recommend that adults should not consume more than 400 milligrams of caffeine a day, while pregnant women should consume no more than 200mg and under-16s 150mg – the equivalent of two cups of tea a day.

But Davis, it was estimated, could have consumed 470mg in under two hours. The coroner concluded that he had died from a "caffeine-induced cardiac event causing a probable arrhythmia".

Davis died in 2017, but in the years since, the market for energy drinks targeted at young people has boomed.

Data from 2018 suggested that one-in-four young Scots consume energy drinks at least once a week – and that was before energy drinks containing 140mg of caffeine went viral with the help of YouTube influencers.

But while most children thankfully don’t collapse at their desks, drinking high-caffeine energy drinks can permanently damage them in other ways. A recent review of evidence from more than 21 countries found that children who drink high-caffeine energy drinks experience poorer sleep, increased headaches and tiredness, emotional difficulties such as stress, anxiety and depression, and increased risk of suicide.

There is also evidence from epilepsy charities that it can lead to seizures and I have seen this first hand. Unsurprisingly, when you pump young people full of a drug that affects their attention span, it also has a knock-on effect on exam results.

The same review found that young people said they were attracted to high-caffeine energy drinks by the taste, cheapness, marketing and ease of buying – not to mention the fact their friends were drinking them too.

Worryingly, separate research from the UK found that the children most likely to be downing the equivalent of four cans of coke are also the poorest – compounding Scotland’s already glaring health inequality divide.

It’s evidence like this which has led many responsible supermarkets to voluntarily stop selling high-caffeine energy drinks to younger teens. But there is more that could be done, which is why the UK Labour government is consulting on a ban on the sale of high-caffeine energy drinks to under-16s in England.

In Scotland, too, we owe it to our young people to make sure they have the healthiest start in life they can so we should give this serious consideration. And let’s face it – this is not just about young people, we should be raising awareness among adults too.

Caffeinated alcohol creates wired, wide-awake drunks and even the USA has taken action because of their concerns. This isn’t about swearing off lattes but simply being careful about the levels of caffeine that you consume because the consequences can be devastating.

The fact is regulation hasn’t kept up with the explosion in high-caffeine energy drinks. It’s time to wake up and smell the coffee.

Jackie Baillie is MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour’s deputy leader and her party’s spokesperson for health