Giorgos K Sakkas, Ilias Ntoumas, Christoforos D Giannaki, Christina Karatzaferi
Energy drink use should be considered not only as caffeine or sugar exposure, but also as a screening cue for sleep debt, fatigue, sedentary behavior, and physical activity readiness. Reducing energy drink use alone is unlikely to resolve adolescent sleep debt; multifactorial interventions that combine caffeine-timing guidance, sleep hygiene, screen management, physical activity support, and policy-level access strategies are needed.
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Energy drinks are marketed to adolescents as products that enhance alertness, concentration, and physical or sports performance, yet their use may also represent a visible marker of sleep debt and a potential contributor to disrupted 24 h behavioral patterns. This narrative review examines evidence linking energy drink consumption with adolescent sleep disturbance and considers implications for obesity risk, cognition, and physical activity.
METHODS: Targeted literature searches were conducted in PubMed/MEDLINE, ScienceDirect, Google Scholar, and reference lists to identify reviews, consensus statements, policy documents, and adolescent-relevant observational or experimental studies. Evidence was synthesized narratively and classified as strong, moderate, limited, or hypothesis-generating according to study design, consistency, age specificity, and directness to the proposed pathway.
RESULTS: The strongest evidence supports associations between energy drink use and short or poor-quality sleep, and between sleep dimensions and adolescent adiposity. Experimental adolescent studies support links between sleep restriction, food choice, reward processing, cognition, and self-regulation. Evidence linking energy drink use directly to reduced physical activity is weaker and likely depends on timing, context, and user subgroup. Sugary and sugar-free products require separate interpretation: sugar-containing drinks may contribute directly to energy intake, whereas sugar-free products may still disrupt sleep through caffeine and may not remove behavioral risk.
CONCLUSIONS: Energy drink use should be considered not only as caffeine or sugar exposure, but also as a screening cue for sleep debt, fatigue, sedentary behavior, and physical activity readiness. Reducing energy drink use alone is unlikely to resolve adolescent sleep debt; multifactorial interventions that combine caffeine-timing guidance, sleep hygiene, screen management, physical activity support, and policy-level access strategies are needed.