For giving my son RedBull?

[PinkPatrick]

My son has a competition coming up on Sunday. He needs to be super fit and rearing to go otherwise he's going to get beat up basically!!

He would normally be ok but he hasn't trained for over a month. He went to a pre-comp training session last night and was knackered after the warm up.

Is it really bad if, just this once I let him have a couple of cans of red bull before we go?

He's 11.

If you never feel any different, why do you drink it every day?

This is an extract from the BBC health website
Concerns

Last year, the coroner at the inquest into the death of 18-year-old Ross Cooney from Limerick, called for more research into the effect of energy drinks.

Ross died of sudden adult death syndrome after a basketball match. Hours earlier he had drunk three cans of Red Bull.

The Times newspaper reports Norway, Denmark and France have classed the drink as medicinal because of its high caffeine content.

Red Bull also contains taurine, a building block for protein and helps digest food. A small amount is thought to be beneficial, but some studies have suggested a small risk to health.

Last year, one billion cans of Red Bull were bought worldwide.

The UK's Food Standards Agency said it was not planning an investigation.

what sort of message does it give him though?
that its ok not too train because you can drink a liad of crap for an energy boost instead?

Patrick, do your son a favour and give the competition a miss. He's not going to be at his best, so why do it? Both my kids do competitive sport so I understand, but you need to let him know there are no 'quick fixes' and that there's no substitute for proper training.

why cant he sit this competition out and go in for the next one when he is back to training

no way in hell i would let my nearly 11yo drink it just because he had a grading

'I drink a redbull equivilant every day and never feel any different tbh. '

But do you have the mass and brain development of an 11 year old boy?
Possibly yes to the latter if you still think it's a good idea. Why not ask his sensei for an opinion?

A can of coke has caffeine in it!

A can of coke doesn't have a manufacturer's warning on it not to drink more than three tins a day as an adult. I think you'll find the percentages different.

redbull has seriously more caffeine than coke does

we don't let our dc's drink coke .

I'm not sure how you think it would help anyway?!

and btw, lucozade has caffeine in it too

Redbull has about double the amount of caffeine, but thats not why it carries a warning, its the Taurine that causes the controversy

Anyhow YABU OP, drinking a couple of can of Red Bull, will not increase your ds's fitness levels.

my children aren't allowed coke either

if you want to mess up your own system by drinking redbull, that's your prerogative as an adult

but you have no right to give it to a child fgs

give him a banana

I dont let my kids drink coke - ds is nearly 14. I wouldnt touch redbull personally. I cannot honestly believe anyone is seriously contemplating giving an 11 year old. SUrely this is a wind up.

I don't think so hercules. I knew a couple a few years ago that used to give it to their 5 & 7 years old

I had a funny experience (as in weird not ha-ha) with Red Bull on a night out where I was driving, not drinking. Think I had 2 cans and felt panicky, heart racing, clammy. Really freaked me out and haven't touched it since. I wouldn't give it to a child based on my experience, but then maybe that was just me.

It reminds of when I was waiting for my 20 week scan with DD1 and a heavily pregnant woman came into the waiting room, cracked open a can of RedBull supped it back, and started chatting on her mobile about how she was waiting for another effing growth scan.

Oh and FleeBee, me too - I thought I was dying, I could barely move I felt so ill!

I don't think this is real, but what the hell.

OP - you need to pull him out of the competition. By your own admission he has not trained and 'is going to get beaten up basically'. If you put him into this without being adequately prepared he is likely to have a horrible experience and may be put off the sport for good.

You owe it to him to withdraw him from this event.

Not going into the ins and outs of giving him Red Bul because that is a side issue imo.

PinkPatrick
you are probably addicted to caffeine, which is why you don't feel the effects of redbull. If you didn't have it you would probably notice the lack.
Caffeine is an addictive substance. A can of redbull is like two or three espresso shots of coffee. One double espresso is enough for me to notice an effect - imagine what giving three times that much to your DS will do?
I used to work in a coffee shop and my tolerance was much higher than it is now but one day after 3 double shot coffees I had a very strange trippy experience. I still get a bit like that if I drink more than I should in a day and it stops me sleeping. I'm also really not overly sensitive to caffeine, far far less than an 11 year old boy.

Oh dear RB
sucked in again!!! Must be all the coffee I have drunk today...

Don't worry, he'll be at least 25 by now.