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Review
. 2018 Mar;33(2):e2650.
doi: 10.1002/hup.2650. Epub 2018 Feb 8.

Alcohol mixed with energy drink (AMED): A critical review and meta-analysis

Joris C Verster  1   2   3 , Sarah Benson  3 , Sean J Johnson  4   5 , Chris Alford  4   5 , Samuel Benrejeb Godefroy  6   7 , Andrew Scholey  3
Affiliations
Review

Alcohol mixed with energy drink (AMED): A critical review and meta-analysis

Joris C Verster et al. Hum Psychopharmacol. 2018 Mar.

Abstract

The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to critically review the (1) prevalence of alcohol mixed with energy drink (AMED) consumption, (2) motives for AMED consumption, (3) correlates of AMED consumption, and (4) whether AMED consumption has an impact on (a) alcohol consumption, (b) subjective intoxication, and (c) risk-taking behavior. Overall a minority of the population consumes AMED, typically infrequently. Motives for AMED consumption are predominantly hedonistic and social. Meta-analyses revealed that AMED consumers drink significantly more alcohol than alcohol-only (AO) consumers. Within-subject comparisons restricted to AMED consumers revealed that alcohol consumption does not significantly differ between typical AMED and AO occasions. On past month heaviest drinking occasions, AMED users consume significantly less alcohol on AMED occasions when compared to AO occasions. AMED consumers experience significantly fewer negative consequences and risk-taking behavior on AMED occasions compared with AO occasions. Meta-analyses of subjective intoxication studies suggest that AMED consumption does not differentially affect subjective intoxication when compared to AO consumption. In conclusion, when compared to AO consumption, mixing alcohol with energy drink does not affect subjective intoxication and seems unlikely to increase total alcohol consumption, associated risk-taking behavior, nor other negative alcohol-related consequences. Further research may be necessary to fully reveal the effects of AMED.

Keywords: alcohol; alcohol mixed with energy drink (AMED); negative consequences; risk taking; subjective intoxication.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Alcohol consumption during typical drinking occasions in AMED and AO consumers. Between‐group comparisons revealed that on a typical drinking occasion, AMED users consumed significantly more alcohol compared to AO occasions. Tests for heterogeneity: Q = 230.9, p = .0001. A random effects model was applied. Z = 6.670, p = .0001. AMED = alcohol mixed with energy drink; AO = alcohol only; CI = confidence interval
Figure 2
Figure 2
Alcohol consumption during the past month's heaviest drinking occasion among AMED and AO consumers. Between‐group comparisons revealed that on the past month's heaviest drinking occasion, AMED users consumed significantly more alcohol when compared to AO occasions. Tests for heterogeneity: Q = 62.2, p = .0001. A random effects model was applied. Z = 8.225, p = .0001. AMED = alcohol mixed with energy drink; AO = alcohol only; CI = confidence interval
Figure 3
Figure 3
Alcohol consumption during a typical AMED and AO occasion. Within‐subject comparisons revealed that alcohol consumption of AMED consumers does not significantly differ on a typical AMED occasion when compared to a typical AO occasion. Tests for heterogeneity: Q = 91.3, p = .0001. A random effects model was applied. Z = −1.372, p = .170. AMED = alcohol mixed with energy drink; AO = alcohol only; CI = confidence interval
Figure 4
Figure 4
Alcohol consumption during the past month's heaviest drinking AMED and AO occasion. Within‐subject comparisons revealed that AMED consumers used significantly less alcohol on their past month heaviest drinking AMED occasion when compared to their past month heaviest drinking AO occasion. Tests for heterogeneity: Q = 327.7, p = .0001. A random effects model was applied. Z = −2.443, p = .015. AMED = alcohol mixed with energy drink; AO = alcohol only; CI = confidence interval
Figure 5
Figure 5
Subjective intoxication following the consumption of AMED or AO. The analysis revealed no significant differences in subjective intoxication after consuming AMED or AO. Tests for heterogeneity: Q = 7.76, p = .170. A fixed effects model was applied. Z = 0.322, p = .747. AMED = alcohol mixed with energy drink; AO = alcohol only; CI = confidence interval
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References

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