Energy drinks” usage among light industrial workers at Suame-Magazine, Kumasi: Motivators and effects.

Abstract

Usage of energy drinks has been observed to augment considerably in current years, particularly among occupations such as mining and resources, construction, agriculture and transport where male workers dominate in numbers. However, owing to the high content of caffeine, sugar and other ingredients, concerns have been raised about the perils and possible negative impact of energy drink intake on health, particularly among the youth. This study sought to determine the prevalence of energy drink usage among Light Industrial Workers at the Suame-Magazine in Ghana, some motivators as well as perceived effects. This study used a cross-sectional, quantitative research design. Semi-structured questionnaires were utilized to collect data on socio-demographic characteristics, energy drink usage, motivators and perceived effects. Data was entered and analyzed using STATA 14.2, and graphically represented using Microsoft Word 2016. Categorical variables were mainly expressed as frequencies and percentages while continuous variables were expressed as means and standard deviations. Chi-square was used to test for associations. Prevalence of energy drink usage among this study population was found to be 81.1%. Increasing energy/replenishing lost energy, improving performance and tasting good were the most common motivators for energy drink consumption (75.5%, 66.3% and 60.4% respectively). Overall, insomnia was the most common (21%) perceived effect after consuming energy drink. Usage of energy drink is high among Light Industrial Workers at the Suame-Magazine primarily because they are taken to address the physically demanding nature of work within this population. It is recommended that the energy drinks are taken with caution