Military soldiers tend to work long hours and they need lots of energy to stay awake during those hours. This tempts them to consume energy drinks in order to stay awake. However, the U.S. military has now issued a warning about the dangers of consuming energy drinks on a regular basis. The Army report stated that energy drinks can do “some serious harm to your body.”
The Pentagon posted information about the health risks associated with energy drinks on their science blog. They referenced a report which states that soldiers are actually more likely to fall asleep in the field if they have consumed too many energy drinks in one day. This particular study was conducted by the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. The study produced information on more than 1,000 Marines and other U.S. soldiers who consumed energy drinks while conducing missions in Afghanistan back in the year 2010.
According to the research study, 45% of military personnel in the field had consumed a minimum of one energy drink each day. It also showed that almost 14% of the military personnel consumed 3 or more energy drinks each day. The study went on to explain that energy drinks are not regulated and often produce negative side effects in the person consuming it. The main side effect being too much caffeine, which causes a person to “crash” rather than stay awake.
The U.S. military has been giving caffeine-filled products to their soldiers for years in order to keep their soldiers awake. They have issued caffeine-infused chewing gum, coffee and a variety of other stimulants. However, the energy drink phenomenon is a rather new one and the military is just now starting to realize that they are actually more dangerous to consume than coffee or chewing gum with caffeine in it.