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Makers of energy drinks may face mounting scrutiny after federal data revealed more American youths are landing in the emergency room due to complications doctors tie to overuse of the beverages.

From 2007 to 2011, the number of emergency hospital visits involving the highly caffeinated energy drinks doubled — from 10,068 to 20,783, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.  

Marketers have succeeded wildly in recent years at selling the drinks to teenagers as physical and mental boosters. Red Bull claims to "give you wings," while Monster Energy boasts of a "killer energy brew." All told, the drinks — which comprise the fastest-growing sector in the beverage industry — brought $10 billion in sales in 2012.

While the number of young patients increased the most, the highest percentage of increase in emergency room visits attributed to the beverages was found in patients age 40 and over.  The older patients went from 1,382 related visits in 2007 to 5,233 visits in 2011 — a 279 percent increase, the study said.Continue reading...

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Hostess Brands makes good on threat to to go out of business because of strike, selling off Wonder Bread, Twinkies, Ding Dongs and other iconic brands.

5-Hour Energy sees parent's bond ratings hurt by FDA probe into deaths as Rockstar is added to energy-drinks probe.

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Competition from huge and established beverage brands hasn't been able to dent 5-Hour Energy's dominance in the energy-shot segment it created. And criticism of its elixirs by nutritionists and dietitians hasn't been able to slow its sales past the $1-billion-a-year mark.

But here's something that might take a bit of fizz out of 5-Hour Energy: The drinks have been cited in the deaths of 13 people in the last four years, according to reports received by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration. The New York Times reported, "Since 2009, 5-Hour Energy has been mentioned in some 90 filings with the FDA, including more than 30 that involved serious or life-threatening injuries like heart attacks, convulsions and, in one case, a spontaneous abortion."

The energy shot made by a suburban-Detroit-based company, Living Essentials, has been associated with 92 "adverse-event reports" over that period, including 32 hospitalizations, an FDA spokeswoman told a number of publications. The death reports comprise open cases being investigated by the agency. The FDA stressed that there is no evidence linking the 5-Hour Energy brand to the deaths or hospitalizations, but that the agency continues to investigate the reports.

5-Hour Energy spokeswoman Elaine Lutz said in a statement that 5-Hour Energy takes "reports of any potential adverse event tied to our products very seriously" and that the company complied "with all of our reporting requirements" to the FDA. She also noted that the shots are intended for "busy adults" and that 5-Hour Energy is an effective dietary supplement and not a beverage or energy drink.Continue reading...

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Even as New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg awaits final implementation of his ban on too-large soft drinks in New York City, the state's attorney general now is investigating whether the energy-drink industry is deceiving consumers with misstatements about the ingredients and health value of its products.

Subpoenas went out in July to Living Essentials, maker of market leader 5-Hour Energy; to PepsiCo Inc., maker of Amp; and to Monster Beverage, the other big brand in the category, according to the Wall Street Journal. The state is seeking more information on the companies' marketing and advertising practices.

The AG's concern is that the marketers overstate the role of exotic-sounding ingredients such as taurine, ginseng and guarana while understating the significance of caffeine as the primary active ingredient in energy drinks and shots The products' labels often don't say how much caffeine is contained in the drink or how it is obtained. Continue reading...

5-Hour Energy and other energy-drink makers face New York state probe over ingredients and marketing.

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