Quebec school groups call for ban on energy drinks for youth after Zachary Miron’s death

A large coalition of parents, unions and schools is mobilizing to ban energy drink sales to teens after a sixteen-year-old died while on ADHD medication.

Several school organizations are calling for a ban on the sale and distribution of energy drinks to young people under 16.

According to Noovo Info, the appeal follows the death of 15-year-old Zachary Miron, who died of an arrhythmia after consuming a drink that interacted with his medication.

Twenty-one school organizations — including parent federations, unions such as the CSN, and educational institutions — are behind the announcement made Thursday by the Fédération des établissements d’enseignement privés (FEEP) in a news release.

“As parents, you never think this kind of tragedy can touch you. Today, if we are speaking publicly, it is with the deep desire that the tragic loss of Zachary not remain without impact and contribute to making things change,” said David Miron, Zachary’s father.

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School officials say the initiative arose from “a real need, on the ground, and a responsibility we feel deeply,” said Jasun Taparauskas, director general of Externat Sacré-Cœur, who represents the institutions calling for the ban.

Noovo Info reports that the FEEP said the demand brings together partners from both the private and public sectors.

“What is particularly powerful about this approach is that it does not come from an organization or an institutional position, but from the ground, from a family and schools that decided to act,” said Stéphane Mayer, chair of the FEEP’s board of directors.

Miron died in the winter of 2024 while skiing in Morin-Heights, in the Laurentians, with his class. The interaction between his ADHD medication and the energy drink caused an arrhythmia that led to his sudden death.

Since then, his parents have been fighting to ban the sale of these drinks to anyone under 18, or at least under 16. They launched a petition at the National Assembly that has collected more than 19,000 signatures since it went online.

They also met with Health Minister Sonia Bélanger on April 1.

With files from The Canadian Press