To think that the rules are RIDICULOUS and infantilising?

[OhBling]

Was just in a Co Op buying a few bits. DS negotiated with me that I'd buy him a Monster, and he'd drink half (they are such huge tins it drives me mad)....

... the man in co op would not sell it to me because I was going to give it to a child.

FFS. I'm an adult. He is my child. I can decide what he can and can't have. And caffeine is NOT illegal for children.

I'm also fully aware that lots of people will say I AM BU because no child should ever drink anything except fresh water, preferably from your local stream.... But I'm extremely annoyed. These rules are ridiculous.

A pot of yogurt can have 9 (source Jamie Oliver when he was doing his programmes abut sugar before the sugar tax was introduced) and yet people let their kids eat those every day.

I am not saying I am a fan of these drinks, they are horrible and very bad for your teeth as well as your health. But there are a lot of sanctimonious comments on this thread which is really annoying.

It's standard OP

I wasn't allowed to buy a bottle of wine when I had DD with me, despite it being very obvious it was for me and we had not spoken about the wine or her drinking it.

It was frustrating of course- as I pointed out, I could come in, buy it alone then let her drink it, but no, he couldn't sell it to me as he said he would be sacked.

They are sticklers in Co-op. They wouldn't let DD but a pritt stick!

Thank your lucky stars that the shop owner gave you a clear excuse why not to purchase a Monster drink for your child.
They taste like texta or ink and are so strong.
Buy him a gelati. Better still, make choclate chip pancakes together.

.....if you were any more pious, you'd have to have all your clothes altered to accommodate the wings.

As someone who was literally addicted to monster twice, I would never give this to my child. I've not had one since new years day and that first month was awful. Now it's clear out of my system and if I want a boost I'll have a can of cola.
The amount of sugar and caffeine in them alone is enough to put me off ever giving them to my son. When you take into account all the other chemicals, additives and preservatives in them it's even more reason not to give them to a child.
And yes, they may not be illegal to sell to minors right now, that's set to change soon. Even I got ID'd at Morrisons when I used to buy them.
The shop and/or worker who sold you the drink would be at a liability if something were to happen to your child i.e a heart attack. This is something that has happened to other children.

Well - the staff don't make the rules, but if they are caught breaking them, they could be disciplined or even lose their job, so I don't blame them for being sticklers, even when it does seem daft (I'm not sure what harm can come to a child from a Pritt stick).

A can of Red Bull has 80mg of caffeine. A typical cup of coffee or an espresso has about the same. Okay, yes, some of the Monster and Jolt type things have a ridiculous amount but that's the brand and not "energy drinks" generally.

Right, I think people with no experience of ADHD don't understand that stimulants have a paradoxical effect on people with ADHD. After all, methylphenidate is a far stronger stimulant than caffeine and that is the most common treatment for children.

Someone the other day was saying one can of the sugar free one contains the same amount of caffeine as 10 cans of coke!

"Someone was saying" ... is not exactly scientific. Prime does in fact have a great deal of caffeine - 200mg but not 10 cans of coke worth. Monster has 160mg. A latte has around 130mg.

I continue to reiterate that I don't have an issue with the guidelines. I'm not desperate to feed DS endless Monster. But as it is NOT illegal for me to buy caffeine drinks and give them to my children, I think Co Op is overstepping by refusing to sell them to me. Similarly, to a pregnant woman not being allowed to buy alcohol in case she drinks it. It's not CO-OP's job to police people.

Buy him a gelati. Better still, make choclate chip pancakes together. You're right. Lots of sugar is much better. MUCH better. . Bit sanctimonious aren't you? DS and I do plenty of such things together, including making no-sugar-added banana pancakes - his favourite!

According to previous posters, it is now illegal for shops to sell energy drinks to children, @OhBling - so it isn't even a Co-op policy, that you could address with Head Office, but it's the law now.

Exactly. It blew my mind when she described it that way!

She was giggling the other day for technically being encouraged to do Class B's in a National Trust tearoom

They could make a VERY bad piece of macaroni art.

There's a reason why it says "not recommended for children" on the can OP. 160mg of caffeine (4 cups of coffee) and 54 grams of sugar (11 teaspoons) per can. The stuff should be illegal.

Google tells me a Starbucks grande latte has 150mg of caffeine. A can of pepsi max has 69mg so 2 would nearly get you to monster level. Monster also comes in sugar free versions. I'm not a caffeine drinker as I am prone to palpitations but I think people need to calm down a bit. Half a can of monster is pretty much equal to a can of pepsi, it's not that deep.

At the end of the day do what you like, but it is illegal to sell energy drinks to under 16s so the shop assistant is following the law and that’s that really. It would be the same for alcohol and cigarettes too.

And as has been repeatedly pointed out, those posters are wrong and no such law exists.

It wasn't a sanctimonious comment. I my job I have to deal with the fallout of other people's bad choices. People come on here to get advice and to be educated to a certain degree.

You’re right, @BCCoach - I misread a previous post, saying that all UK supermarkets were banning the sale of energy drinks to minors, and assumed they were doing so because of a new law. My bad.

But it does still mean that it isn’t just the co-op having this rule, it’s all the supermarkets. And it doesn’t change the fact that, if a supermarket chain sets rules like this, the staff do have to follow the rules, if they want to avoid sanctions.

Some people only watch half the news it appears. It’s not illegal, there was a government consultation pre-COVID that didn’t make it to law because the government were too busy breaking other laws themselves it fell off the priority list. You really can’t argue with a shop’s policies, just shop somewhere else if it’s that much of an issue - lots of schools have similar policies. But hey, at least you got lots of child rearing tips off the back of your post!

Yep, corner shops and convenience stores don't seem to bother however. Mind you a lot of them aren't even bothered when something is actually illegal to sell to kids either.

I really not sure what response you were expecting OP.

No true. A cashier only needs to suspect a person is purchasing for an under age person to require ID. No ID no sale. It's the law.

The OP didn't come on for advice, they came on to have a rant.

I didn't know (although maybe should have done) that nail varnish remover is an age-restricted product. As is nail varnish (not sure if it's law but Superdrug policy). Shop assistant said oh you have to be over 18 to buy this, clicked the button and moved on. Didn't ID me :) . I didn't ask if she would have refused to sell it to me if I'd had a child with me.

Presume it's because of the alcohol - but would anyone really drink nail varnish remover? She thought they might sniff it, like glue.

Very true - apparently one of our local takeaways will deliver cigarettes alongside the food, without bothering to check if the recipient is an adult.