Monster Beverage has been sued by the district attorney of San Francisco for allegedly marketing to children 6 years old and up.

The D.A. was particularly upset by Monster's sponsorhip of youth leagues for kids and their use of scantily clad Monster Girls to appeal to teens. Monster has since countered with its own suit, alleging they've been singled out by the D.A.

For you as a parent, you must be diligent about monitoring the energy drink intake of your kids. Energy drinks are everywhere these days. After starting out as a nightclub thing in Europe back in the 1990s, they made the leap across the Atlantic and have now become ingrained in American culture.

A typical 24-ounce can of a popular brand like Monster Energy has as much caffeine as three cups of coffee.

As a parent, you have to educate yourself and your kids about the potential dangers of taking super-concentrated amounts of caffeine. The danger of an accelerated heartbeat from that caffeine could be deadly in rare cases.

Particularly if you have pre-teens, you have to lay down the law in your own household and give guidance on moderation, if you permit your kids to drink energy drinks at all.