July 31, 2026
Gives You Wings, and Comment Fights
Dubious research tied to Red Bull has shaped energy drink policy
Red Bull’s science fight sparks a comment war over booze, bans, and ‘garbage’ drinks
TLDR: An investigation says Red Bull-backed studies were used to push back against rules on energy drinks, even when independent research often found more risk. Commenters split into three camps: don’t care, ban nothing, and “please never make me work with energy-drink people again.”
The investigation’s big bombshell is that Red Bull-funded research helped shape public policy on energy drinks, especially around the messy question of mixing them with alcohol. That includes scientists showing up at government hearings, arguing there was no good reason to restrict sales to minors, while some of those same experts had financial ties to the company. The result? In at least one early case, officials backed off. And online, readers immediately turned the story into a full-on culture war over freedom, health, and whether energy drinks turn coworkers into demons.
The strongest reactions were all over the map. One camp basically shrugged and went full chaos mode: “That’s okay, I’ll still keep drinking that garbage,” as if the scandal only made the can taste sweeter. Another group got nitpicky in peak internet fashion, arguing the real issue wasn’t even framed right — was this about the danger of caffeine with alcohol, reckless drunk behavior, or whether kids should be buying these drinks at all? Even the headline got dragged, with one commenter complaining it forgot to mention alcohol or vodka, which honestly says everything about how badly people wanted the real villain named.
Then came the libertarian fireworks: “Is it any of our business? No.” But the funniest and most brutal take came from someone who said they’d rather work with slightly tipsy pub-goers than a team fueled by energy drinks, because that stuff makes people go “crazy in a long term way.” So yes, the science is disputed — but the comments? Fully caffeinated.
Key Points
- •In 2011, Suffolk County dropped a proposed ban on selling energy drinks to minors after testimony from scientists, including Utrecht University researcher Joris Verster, who argued the science did not support the restriction.
- •The article says Red Bull funded and supported academic research for more than a decade, including grants, doctoral funding, travel, and policy-related talking points, to counter restrictions on its products.
- •According to the investigation, Red Bull-backed research and studies by researchers with financial ties to the company were used in the United States and Canada to oppose age restrictions and warning labels.
- •A 2015 report by a European food agency cited such studies in concluding that evidence was unclear on harms from mixing alcohol and energy drinks, and the article says that report remains influential.
- •The investigation found that 95% of Red Bull-funded or conflict-linked studies concluded mixing alcohol and energy drinks did not increase risk, while about 80% of independent studies concluded the opposite.