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The sale of energy drinks could be banned to anybody under 18 in England, Prime Minister Theresa May has said.

High levels of sugar and caffeine in the drinks have been linked to a number of health and behaviour problems.

Many supermarkets already take part in a voluntary ban.

The government is asking for views on what age the ban should apply to, but gave under 16 and under 18 as options.

This ban has only been suggested for England - Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can decide for themselves whether they would like to ban energy drink sales to children.

Energy drinks are designed to give you short bursts of energy.

They have high levels of sugar and of something called caffeine.

Caffeine is what is known as a 'stimulant', which means it effects your body to make you feel more alert.

It can be found in coffee, tea and in food like chocolate.

Experts say that too much caffeine and sugar can be bad for you.

Drinking energy drinks can lead to things like obesity, headaches and it might affect how well you sleep too.

According to research, young people in the UK are some of the biggest drinkers of energy drinks in Europe.

Research by Fuse, the Centre for Translational Research in Public Health, suggests that 1 in 3 young people are regularly consuming energy drinks.

Energy Drinks Europe, which represents drinks manufacturers, said a 250ml can of energy drink typically contained about the same amount of caffeine as a cup of coffee and as much sugar as that in juices and soft drinks.

A spokesman added: "For all ages, there are much greater contributors of caffeine and sugar in the diet than energy drinks.

"A sales ban on energy drinks is therefore arbitrary, discriminatory and not effective.

"Effective measures would include portion control and serving size reductions."

At the moment, sales of energy drinks to under 16s are already banned in many shops.

However, it's thought that this is not doing enough to prevent young people from buying drinks that could be harmful to their health.

The ban would make the sale of energy drinks from all retailers and vending machines illegal to young people.

Whether this ban would come into force for under 16s or under 18s will be up for debate.