الفهرس 
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Abstract
Energy drinks mostly contain caffeine, taurine, l-carnitine, carbohydrates, glucuronolactone, vitamins, and other herbal supplements like ginseng and guarana among others. The market and degree of consumption of energy drinks is increasing every year and while only few have detailed knowledge of their potential harmful physiological and psychological effects, the number of publications that have documented the potential adverse risks associated with the use of these beverages remains small.
Global energy drink consumption rose by 14 % in 2011 according to the latest report from the Zenith International food and drink consultancy. The primary target for the marketing of energy drinks is young adults and teens, as demonstrated by a recent US survey, which shows that 34 % of young adults aged 18–24 and 31 % of adolescents aged 12–17 consumed these drinks, as opposed to only 22% of adults aged 25–34 and a mere 3 % of people aged 65 or more.
The current study aims to estimate the frequency of energy drinks consumption by adolescents and young adults, identify the different types of ED available in the market, Assess the frequency and quantities of energy drinks consumed by adolescents and young adults, determine the factors associated with the rate of consuming energy drinks and describe the symptoms associated with ED consumption.
The study is conducted in: Alexandria Sporting Club, Smouha Youth Center, Alexandria University Faculties and Market sites: Carrefour, Metro and Zahran market. Using a cross-sectional study, the target populations are adolescents and young adult males and females in the age group 15-35 years. Methods to collect data are using a predesigned questionnaire. Data were analysed using PC with IBM SPSS version 21.
In the present study ”in Alexandria” it was found that 22.4% of the studied sample used energy drinks (n=101/450) which is less than the U.S figures ranging from 22-34% for different age sectors, the main reason regarding the difference was the price, a lot of the non-users found that it was pricy for them unlike the global studies where price was not an issue ,but in Egypt it is way pricy for a lot to purchase it because it is an eleven-to-twelve pounds a can which is relatively pricy where a lot cannot afford especially on a regular basis so the finance of the country do control consumption. Another factor was that a lot of people did not hear about it, where others were afraid of its side effects.
The present study showed that 30.1% (n=75/101) of males were users as compared by 12.9% (n=26/101) of females. The study showed that males to females ratio was 2.3:1 which was expected as regarding our social standards males are more prone to exercising, hanging out and gatherings also males like to exercise more and they are into body building, so of course lifting weights requires all the energy that they can get unlike sports played by females where tennis and running do not require that amount of energy. The above mentioned studies also show that males use ED more than females.
In the current study we found that 70.3% (n=71/101) used them once to twice a week, 22.8% (n=23/101) used them from three to four times a week, 6.9% (n=7/101) used them five times or more per week. In this study it seems that the frequency is higher than the previous studies.
In the present study we found that exercising was the most common reason for drinking energy drinks 42.6%(n=43/101) followed by those who used it to help them concentrate 29.7%(n=30/101),while a third group used it to quench their thirst 21.8%(n=22/101) and lastly, some of them used it leisurely18.8%(n=19/101). The reasons in Alexandria are different, because of religious regulations; there is 0% in our sample who mixed alcohol with ED as compared to 54% in the previous studies in the U.S., and because of social regulations the parties are scarce in our community as 0% in our studied sample reported drinking ED for partying reasons, so the use of ED differs according to the religious and social standards of the community.
In the current study 90.1%(n=91/101) claimed that they didn’t feel any side effects and 4% (n=4/101) did experience headache,3%(n=3/101) experienced insomnia and another 3%(n=3/101) felt crashing(crashing can be defined as the feeling of suddenly loosing energy and the inability to perform any task as the blood glucose drops as a result of high insulin secretion from the high sugar content of ED), only 1%(n=1/101) felt tremors. Whereas 62.5% (n=45/72) of the quitters quitted as they felt it was useless and they didn’t feel anything and 15.3% (n=11/72) quitted as they felt side effects. This is far less than the above mentioned studied, they may got lucky and didn’t drink another caffeinated beverage that day, or they may even didn’t recognize what they felt or didn’t attribute it to EDs.
The present study showed that ED consumption was more common with low levels of education (primary, preparatory & secondary schools) representing 28.6% (n=2/101), 28.3%(n=13/101) &25.4%(n=53/101) respectively as compared to higher educational levels(university & post graduate) 18.9% (n=31/101)& 8.3% (n=2/101) respectively. This complies with the mentioned American and Canadian studies. This also may be because low educational levels are mostly young age where they are more eager to try new supplements and experience advertised products.so it is also age related more than educational related.
from the results of the present study, it could be concluded that: 30.1% of the males were consumers as compared to 12.9% females. where the highest age group 38.9% was among (15-20) years old followed by (20-25) years who were 20.2% and 14.3% for those who are under 15.which was significant (p=0.000). The frequency of consumption was 93% who used it once or twice a week.91.3% are those who used it three to four times a week and finally 71.4% are those who used it 5 times or more per week. The reasons for using ED were exercising 43%,help them to concentrate 30%,to quench their thirst 22% and finally for leisurely consumption 19%.Side effects experienced by consumers were 90.1% of them did not feel anything,4% felt a headache,3% felt crashing and 1% felt tremors. The present study revealed that 47.5% (n=48/101) of the consumers felt an increase in energy and wakefulness whereas 52.5% (n=53/101) didn’t feel anything.
from the results of the present study, we can recommend that: The best option is to get enough sleep, good nutrition and drink filtered coffee rather than espresso or ED, and to use more regulated supplemental vitamins under the care of a physician when necessary. And if you must consume it, it is best to look for a drink that contains the lowest amount of caffeine and sugar while still accomplishing the needed results, and to avoid consuming energy drinks unless absolutely necessary. Before trying a new energy drink, it is important to research the contents to find out about the drug interactions and other health risks. As with every product, it is best to read into any marketing claim, especially those that advertise a ‘healthier’ alternative.