Australian school performance linked to energy drinks

Energy drinks are causing Australian students to fall behind in international rankings, experts say.

The shock findings come as celebrity chef Jamie Oliver calls for a global ban on the caffeinated drinks for under 16-year-olds, labelling them ‘legal highs’.

The affordability of energy drinks such as Red Bull, Monster and V has made school children dependent on them and their high sugar and caffeine levels make it difficult for students to concentrate, Mr Oliver said.

The affordability of energy drinks such as Red Bull, Monster and V has made school children dependent on them

He said the problem had already become an epidemic in Britain, with some children consuming more than two litres per day.

‘We have massive issues with energy drinks in Britain… they are fast becoming a breakfast for a lot of kids, it’s terrible,’ Mr Oliver told The Daily Telegraph.

‘They’re being misused almost like a legal high’.

The Children’s Hospital at Westmead paediatric sleep expert Dr Chris Seton found more than one in three teenagers in Australia drink two energy drinks per day.

Australian students rank 19th internationally for maths, 11th in reading and ninth in science.

‘These rankings started in the year 2000 and every year Australia students’ performance was worse than the year before and that parallels the sleep deprivation caused by increasing use of technology and energy drinks,’ Dr Seton says.

The shock findings come as celebrity chef Jamie Oliver calls for a global ban on the caffeinated drinks for under 16-year-olds labelling them ‘legal highs’

The Children’s Hospital at Westmead paediatric sleep expert Dr Chris Seton found more than one in three teenagers in Australia drink two energy drinks per day

Australian students rank 19th internationally for maths, 11th in reading and ninth in science