Consumption of Energy Drinks and Attitudes Among School Students Following the Ban on Sales to Minors in Poland

<b>Background:</b> In 2024, Poland introduced a ban on the sale of energy drinks to individuals under 18 years of age. The aim of this study was to assess energy drink consumption among adolescents aged 12-17 years and to evaluate the effectiveness of this regulation. <b>Methods:</b> This cross-sectional study was conducted in 2025, using an anonymous questionnaire. A total of 1691 students from primary and secondary schools, living in both urban and rural areas, participated. <b>Results:</b> Consumption of energy drinks in the month preceding the survey was reported by 41.1% of students, with the likelihood of consumption increasing by nearly 50% with each additional year of age (OR = 1.496; 95% CI: 1.381-1.621; <i>p</i> < 0.001). Secondary school students reported significantly higher consumption compared with primary school students (47.1% vs. 21.6%; <i>p</i> < 0.001). The median consumption frequency was 1-2 times per month among primary school students and 1-2 times per week among secondary school students. More than half of adolescents (58.1%) stated that the sales ban did not restrict their access to energy drinks, with adult-mediated purchases being the most common source. Among those attempting direct purchases in physical shops, only 19.3% were consistently asked to provide proof of age. Over half of the respondents did not believe that energy drinks can be harmful to their health; these students reported consumption more than twice as often as students who regarded them as harmful (54.0% vs. 23.9%; <i>p</i> < 0.001). <b>Conclusions:</b> These findings suggest that, to date, the ban on energy drink sales to minors in Poland has had a limited impact on adolescent consumption, highlighting the need for enhanced educational initiatives in this area. However, the study was cross-sectional in nature and was not conducted on a nationally representative sample of adolescents, which should be taken into account when interpreting the results.