Investigation on the Consumption of Caffeinated beverages by High School Students in Gyeonggi-do

Abstract

Surveys on the consumption of caffeinated beverages by high school students (n=886) were performed. Of the students, 97.0% consumed a variety of caffeinated beverages, including carbonated drinks (90.0%), processed milk and cocoa (79.0%), coffee (63.0), teas (52.1), energy drinks (16.4%) and nourishment drinks (15.5%). The frequency of intake per student was 8.2 times per week. Caffeine intake through the caffeinated beverages was 41.53 mg/day, which was accounted for by coffee (51.5%), carbonated drinks (19.6%), processed milk and cocoa (11.5%), teas (11.4%), energy drinks (5.0%) and nourishment drinks (1.1%). Students with high levels of stress, those who consumed snacks twice a day, and those who used a computer (or smart phone) for more than 3 hours per day showed significantly higher caffeine intake. The groups with high caffeine intake experienced heart palpitations, insomnia and pollakiuria. Students indicated that they consumed the caffeinated beverages for the taste (57.9%), waking up (18.0%), thirst (13.2%), etc. (10.9%). They tended to consume drinks with a high content of caffeine to sleep less. In addition, they rarely checked the label, and showed a lack of awareness of the caffeine contents in the beverages, which calls for education.

Beverage consumption among Korean adolescents: data from 2016 Korea Youth Risk Behavior Survey

“…Our results reveal that unhealthy beverages were consumed more often by boys than by girls, and coffee was the preferred beverage amongst high school students as compared to middle school students. In other Korean researches, the consumption of three types of unhealthy beverages (carbonated beverages, SSBs, and energy drinks) were significantly higher in Korean boys than girls [89171819]; however, studies concerning school level were inconsistent [2021].…”

“…Coffee intake is closely related to caffeine intake. Caffeine-containing beverages frequently consumed by adolescents include coffee, carbonated beverages, processed milk, tea, and energy drinks [19]. Therefore, it is expected that increasing beverage consumption leads to a proportional caffeine intake.…”

“…Regardless of the gender, taste was the primary reason for adolescents to drink beverages [192129], while the number of adolescents who chose ‘thirsty’ significantly differed by gender. This can be comparable to their physical activity.…”

The Relationship of Caffeine Intake with Depression, Anxiety, Stress, and Sleep in Korean Adolescents

“…Considering the fact that recommended daily intake of caffeine for children and adolescents is 2.5 mg/kg, it is reasonable to say that the risk is relatively higher in those populations. 15 18) Adolescents who are short of knowledge about caffeine and controlling ability are more vulnerable to the adverse effects and addiction given the current situation where energy drinks and coffee are highly accessible due to a rapidly growing market and caffeine is widely used in favorite foods. 19) In fact, Drug Abuse Warning Network reported that the number of emergency department visits involving energy drinks doubled from 10,068 visits in 2007 to 20,783 visits in 2011, patients aged 18 to 25 were most commonly involved in energy drink-related emergency department visits.…”

High School Students' Sugar Intake Behaviors and Consumption of Sugary Processed Food Based on the Level of Sugar-related Nutrition Knowledge in Seoul Area

“…Do and colleagues [42] reported that high school students in Gyeonggi province used taste (76.7%) and price (10.5%) as criteria in selecting drinks. That is to say, regardless of age, everyone considered "taste" to be most important when selecting drinks.…”