Energy Drinks – what are they?
They are marketed to increase energy, weight loss, stamina, athletic performance, promote wakefulness, and enhance weight loss. Energy drinks contain caffeine, taurine, vitamins, and herbal supplements in addition to sugar or sweeteners.
Although they may seem like a new fad, these drinks have been available to the public for some time. For instance, Red Bull (currently one of the most popular energy drinks) was introduced in Austria in 1987 and to the United States in 1997.The original coca leaf (from which cocaine is derived) and kola nut (from which caffeine is derived) form of cola soft drinks was available in 1886, with similar results to energy drinks at the time.
There are many energy drinks that are packed full of caffeine, taurine, l-carnitine, carbohydrates, glucuronolactone, vitamins, and herbal supplements, such as ginseng and guarana.
It is not required that manufacturers of energy drinks include the caffeine content of herbal supplements such as guarana, yerba mate, cocoa, and kola nuts in the nutritional information, so consumers are unaware of this aspect.There are different brands of energy drinks that contain caffeine ranging from 50mg to 550mg per can or bottle
In high doses, caffeine may cause abnormal stimulation of the nervous system, and is one of the most commonly consumed alkaloids worldwide in the form of coffee, tea, and soft drinks.
Energy drinks contain caffeine, which can have adverse effects on the cardiovascular, hematological, and gastrointestinal systems. Many contain 70 to 80 mg of caffeine per 8-ounce serving (*3 times more than in cola drinks).It is possible for the caffeine content of 16-ounce drinks to be nearly five times that of 8 oz of cola drinks when packaged as “energy shots” (0.8-3 oz) or as 16-oz drinks
There are now 11 percent of energy drinks sold in the U.S. that are energy shots, a type of energy drink. Energy shots are the fastest-growing segment of the energy drink market.Most energy drinks come in 12 and 16 ounce (355 and 474 ml) cans or bottles, whereas energy shots come in smaller 50 ml bottles. Both energy drinks and energy shots contain the same amount of caffeine, however, energy shots tend to contain more sugar.