By Mohamed Jaward Nyallay
The Sierra Leone Pharmacy Board recently raised concern over the high level of caffeine content found in energy drinks.
The head of the pharmacy regulatory body said in a media report that laboratory tests conducted by the Pharmacy Board showed that there is a higher level of caffeine in energy drinks than is acceptable.
Caffeine, according to medical experts, is a drug that is naturally found and can be used in the production of many food and beverages. The beverage market in Sierra Leone is flooded with different stocks of foods and beverage that have different caffeine levels.
Officials at the Pharmacy Board have promised to replicate this test on more energy drinks to ascertain how wide spread is the deception among beverage companies were. This latest testing results directly puts the life of energy drink consumers at risk. Energy drink is very popular among young people, especially students.
Ali Tarawallie is a student at Fourah Bay College, and one of those students who heavily relies on energy drink for his studies. He says he consumes at least a bottle a day.
“I consume at least a can of energy drink per night during exams. It keeps me active and energetic, especially as a student to go about my studies” Tarawallie told Politico.
Meanwhile, experts have suggested that the safe level of caffeine consumption for a healthy adult should be between 300 to 400 milligrams per day and the danger about the latest finding is that beverage companies indicate a lesser amount of caffeine on the container than it really contains.
Sheku Ahmad Tejan, another student at Fourah Bay College, said he drinks at most two cans a night for studies or other exercises even though he gets persistent headaches after consuming it.
Acute sleep shortage is one of the many causes of persistent headaches.
Medical practitioners have warned about the adverse effect of caffeine on health. They say it can cause serious health problems from severe head ache, tremors, nausea, and seizure, to sudden cardiac arrest which can lead to death.
Dr Chidi Ngwaba, a lifestyle disease prevention expert, says in a report on the UK’s Mirror online that while working in hospital he regularly witnessed teenagers been admitted with heart palpations after drinking energy drinks so they could study.
“These are addictive and packed with sugar. They’re not something children should have access to,” he noted.
The problem with Sierra Leone is that access to energy drinks and other caffeinated products are very easily accessed, and there is no strictly enforced regulation on their consumption.
(C) Politico 15/03/16
