This response:

• Calls for a legal age-of-sale restriction on high-caffeine energy drinks for all under-18s, replacing inconsistent voluntary retail measures.

• Highlights strong evidence linking energy drink consumption in young people with poor sleep, anxiety, behavioural issues and reduced academic performance.

• Sets out the significant oral health risks, noting that many energy drinks have very low pH levels and high free sugar content, increasing the risk of dental erosion and tooth decay.

• Explains how frequent exposure during adolescence - when enamel maturation and health behaviours are still developing - creates long-term oral health consequences.

• Links energy drink consumption with wider risky behaviours, including poorer toothbrushing habits and unhealthy dietary patterns.

• Emphasises the disproportionate impact of diet-related harm on children and young people from more deprived communities.

• Supports consistent regulation in line with other age-restricted health-risk products such as tobacco and alcohol.

The response stresses that introducing a clear legal age restriction is a proportionate, evidence-based step that supports prevention, protects oral and general health, and contributes to the ambition of giving every child the healthiest possible start in life.

Response issued: November 2025

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