Assessment of energy drink consumption patterns and perceptions among a sample of university students in Beirut, Lebanon : a mixed methodology approach -

Abstract

The consumption of energy drinks (EDs) by university students has become widespread despite the established evidence of its detrimental health effects. In Lebanon, the high prevalence of energy drink consumption alone or combined with alcohol has been observed among young adults. However, little is known about the patterns of EDs consumption and the motivational factors driving Lebanese youth towards the consumption of these drinks. Thus, the objectives of this study were to assess the correlates of EDs consumption and explore the perceptions and attitudes of Lebanese university students towards energy drinks as well as identify main facilitators and barriers for this drinking behavior. A mixed methods approach was adopted to meet the objectives of this study. The quantitative component of the thesis included the recruitment of a total of 227 university students aged between 18 and 30 years old from two private universities in Lebanon. Study participants were asked to complete a 36-items semi-quantitative questionnaire assessing their socio-demographic and lifestyle characteristics, as well as their beverage consumption patterns, mainly EDsand EDs mixed with alcohol (AmEDs), together with other caffeinated and alcoholic beverages. Results of the quantitative component of the study assisted in developing the objectives and questions for the focus group discussions (FGDs) conducted to explore the perceptions and attitudes of participants towards EDs. A total of 29 university students, who reported regular ED consumption, from the same private universities participated in sixFGDs. The main purpose of these discussionswas to explore the attitudes, beliefs, and practices of young Lebanese adults towards thesedrinks. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed using the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS 20) to explore correlates of EDs. Thematic analysis was conducted for the qualitative component of this thesis to identify recurrent themes from FGDs. The results of this study revealed that among