Background Energy drinks (EDs) reduce sleepiness and fatigue and improve driving performance whereas alcohol does just the opposite. Although it is a trendy combination among young people, the effects of alcohol mixed with EDs on driving performance have been poorly studied. The aim was to assess if there is an interaction between the effects of both drinks on driving-related skills as well as perceptions about driving ability. Methods We conducted a randomized, double-blind, and placebo-controlled 4-way crossover clinical trial. Participants were 16 healthy volunteers. Interventions of 60 g of ethanol and 750 mL of Red Bull (RB) were administered in 2 separated doses. Conditions were alcohol + RB placebo, alcohol + RB, alcohol placebo + RB, and both placebos. Objective performance was assessed using a tracking test and simple reaction time, N-Back, and movement estimation tasks. Additionally, willingness to drive, other subjective effects, and ethanol and caffeine blood concentrations were also measured. Results Alcohol increased the time outside the road in the tracking test and increased simple reaction time, but the addition of RB had no main or interaction effects on performance. Nonetheless, driving-related skills after alcohol + RB were better than after alcohol alone. Willingness to drive increased with the combination of drinks. RB also reduced alcohol-induced sedation whereas drunkenness did not change. These effects were seen even though alcohol + RB increased alcohol (14.8%) and caffeine plasma concentrations (17.6%). Conclusions Mixing EDs with alcohol predisposes consumers to drive under alcohol influence, perhaps in part because EDs counteract its detrimental effects on driving-related skills. Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT02771587.

中文翻译：

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混合能量饮料和酒精对驾驶相关技能的影响

背景 能量饮料 (ED) 可减少困倦和疲劳并改善驾驶性能，而酒精则恰恰相反。尽管这是年轻人中的一种时尚组合，但酒精与 ED 混合对驾驶性能的影响却鲜有研究。目的是评估两种饮料对驾驶相关技能的影响以及对驾驶能力的看法之间是否存在相互作用。方法 我们进行了一项随机、双盲和安慰剂对照的 4 路交叉临床试验。参加者为16名健康志愿者。60 克乙醇和 750 毫升红牛 (RB) 干预剂分 2 次给药。条件是酒精+RB安慰剂、酒精+RB、酒精安慰剂+RB和两种安慰剂。使用跟踪测试和简单的反应时间评估客观表现，N-Back 和运动估计任务。此外，还测量了驾驶意愿、其他主观影响以及乙醇和咖啡因血液浓度。结果酒精增加了跟踪测试中的路外时间并增加了简单反应时间，但RB的添加对性能没有主效应或交互作用。尽管如此，酒精 + RB 后的驾驶相关技能比单独饮酒后更好。随着饮料的组合，驾驶意愿增加。RB 还减少了酒精引起的镇静，而醉酒没有改变。即使酒精 + RB 增加了酒精 (14.8%) 和咖啡因血浆浓度 (17.6%)，这些效果仍然存在。结论 将 ED 与酒精混合会使消费者在酒精影响下开车，也许部分是因为 ED 抵消了其对驾驶相关技能的不利影响。Clinicaltrials.gov：NCT02771587。