Aug 124 min read

Energy Drinks vs. Your Health

Just recently, a 21-year-old college student died after drinking Panera’s charged lemonade, leaving the world in curiosity. She suffered two cardiac arrests. [1] Many teenagers use energy drinks to keep them awake and moving every day, yet they don’t understand what the abuse of caffeine does to their bodies.

So, what are energy drinks? What are the advantages and disadvantages of drinking them? How do energy drinks affect one’s health? And lastly, what are some examples of how energy drinks have negatively impacted people in the past?

What Are Energy Drinks?
Pros and Cons of Consuming Energy Drinks
"Energy's" Affect on Your Health
A True Story
Sources & Works Cited

What are energy drinks?

An energy drink is a beverage that typically contains large amounts of caffeine, added sugars, and stimulants. Students in schools across the world often use these drinks to provide an extra boost of energy and stay alert and awake. [2] Social media and influencer marketing have made brands such as Red Bull, Celsius, Alani, and Monster popular among adolescents. [3] The most common ingredient in an energy drink is caffeine. Caffeine is a stimulant that can influence the activity of neuronal control pathways in the nervous system, and most energy drinks contain between 70 and 200 mg of caffeine per 16-oz serving. An 8-oz cup of instant coffee contains 40 to 80 mg of caffeine. [4] Other ingredients found in an energy drink include taurine (an amino acid), glucuronolactone (a substance produced within one’s body and a metabolite of glucose), guarana (a rainforest vine), and B vitamins (a type of water-soluble vitamin).

(Source: Pritikin- Health and Wellness Retreat)

Pros and Cons of Energy Drinks

While the stimulants found in energy drinks can increase alertness, attention, and energy, they can also increase blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing. The stimulants in these drinks can harm the nervous system. [2] Energy drinks may reduce the steadiness of the hands as well. [5] Consuming energy drinks daily can lead to dehydration (not enough water in your body), heart complications (such as irregular heartbeat and heart failure), anxiety (feeling nervous and jittery), and insomnia (inability to sleep). [2]

If energy drinks are “so bad,” why do people still drink them? Well, there are ups and downs to energy drinks. Most people use energy drinks before a workout or a gym day to increase their exercise time frame. The caffeine in the drink stimulates working muscles to use fat as a fuel, which allows for prolonged exercise. A recent study on working out concluded that participants were able to exercise longer before exhaustion occurred with the intake of an energy drink. [4] In several studies, energy drinks improved physical endurance, but not necessarily muscle strength or power. [5]

“Energy’s” Effect on Your Health

In 2011, 1,499 twelve- to seventeen-year-olds went to the emergency room for energy drink-related reasons. [2] Many adults have also been admitted to emergency rooms due to overdoses of caffeine after consuming guarana-based energy drinks (guarana adds to the caffeine dosage). Most of these hospital visits are due to the large caffeine intake from the energy drinks. Caffeine typically raises heart rate and blood pressure, and with high ingestion (over 200mg) can cause insomnia, nervousness, headache, tachycardia, arrhythmia, and nausea. [4] Superfluous caffeine can lead to serious heart and blood vessel problems. Caffeine may also negatively affect adolescents’ developing cardiovascular and nervous systems. [5]

(Source: How much caffeine is in YOUR child's favorite energy drink? | Daily Mail Online)

Immoderate energy drink consumption may disorder teenagers’ sleep patterns and may be associated with increased risk-taking behavior as well. Besides caffeine, negative bodily effects may arise from the excessive sugar intake that comes from energy drinks. A 16-oz container of an energy drink contains 54 to 62 grams of added sugar, which surpasses the maximum added sugar value recommended for a whole day. [5]

A True Story

There have been numerous cases reported of injuries or even deaths related to energy drink intake. At least four documented cases of caffeine-associated deaths have been reported. More than five separate cases of seizures associated with the consumption of energy/power drinks were documented. Another statistic shows that between 2007 and 2011, the number of energy drink-related visits to emergency departments doubled and that in 2011, 1 in 10 of these visits resulted in hospitalization. [5] Recently, a healthy 18-year-old died while playing basketball after he drank two cans of Red Bull (an energy drink). [4] On top of that, postural tachycardia syndrome (a condition that causes your heart to beat faster than normal when you transition from sitting or lying down to standing up [6] was recorded in a young volleyball player after an excess intake of Red Bull, leading experts to suspect that the drink is a possible cause of orthostatic intolerance. [4]

(Source: The DAWN Report: Update on Emergency Department Visits Involving Energy Drinks: A Continuing Public Health Concern)

Conclusion

Many young people use energy drinks before sports or the school day to stay alert, awake, and productive, without understanding the effects on their bodies. It is important to read the labels and ingredients on energy drinks before consumption to confirm that the caffeine dosage is within a reasonable value. It is also important to make sure that the added sugar value is under one’s recommended daily value. Minor side effects such as dehydration and insomnia prove that energy drinks are not the healthiest option. Yet, what is most alarming is the energy drink-related hospitalizations, for they truly exemplify the harmful effects of excess consumption of energy drinks.