| Intense pick-me-ups. Vodka mixers. Hangover cures. Whatever their use, energy drinks have quickly and undeniably become the fuel of choice for those too hip for a regular cup of joe. Loaded with caffeine and sugar and often laced with herbs, vitamins or amino acids, they are an immediate boost for people living in an always-on world.
Led by such brands as Red Bull, Rockstar and Monster, energy drinks are now a multi-billion dollar industry. However, with their increasingly novel additives, they are taking consumers into uncharted nutritional territory.
Along with exotic formulations – fruit extracts, teas and dietary supplements like ginseng, glucosamine and taurine – the jolt in these shiny, happy cans packs a huge caffeine punch. Some experts say they may be fostering an unhealthy dependence on caffeine as they pad the waistlines of the people who down them.
"A single serving of an energy beverage consumed without alcohol is not likely to be of harm," says Andrea Holwegner, a registered dietician with Health Stand Nutrition Consulting, a private Calgary company. "But two or more may contain an excessive amount of caffeine – over 400 mg – that is not recommended for health. (They) also contain a substantial amount of sugar."
Though ordinary use of caffeine, however addictive, is generally benign, using it to help keep pace with a hectic world doesn’t solve the problem. Rather, the habit becomes part of the problem. While Holwegner stops short of saying people never should consume energy drinks, she says that mixing them with alcohol is dangerous and should be avoided. Mixing alcohol and caffeine is nothing new – think of the people who try to sober up by drinking coffee after a night out – but the combo is now being market and consumed regularly in bars. Nowadays, many establishments have fridges dedicated to energy drinks. They’ve become de rigueur in the trendy club scene – think Jager-bombs.
Any why not? Mixing a highly caffeinated energy drink with alcohol to produce drunkenness without the fatigue that can accompany it might seem logical. But getting a buzz with a burst of energy isn’t as simple as it seems. Holwegner says mixed drinks such as Red Bull and vodka can be a lethal combo.
"My concern over mixing energy beverages that contain caffeine and alcohol is that an individual may feel more alert even though he or she is still intoxicated," she says. "You could end up a wide-awake drunk and potentially be driving intoxicated."
In a series of recent studies, a professor of psychobiology at the Federal University of Sao Paulo in Brazil tested the effects of Red Bull and vodka on the perception of drunkenness. In her study, 26 Brazilian men were evaluated as they downed an energy drink and alcohol, separately and in combination.
Consumption of the beverages together didn’t diminish the men’s intoxication, but it did reduce the men’s ability to perceive their own inebriation, leading them to believe they were more in control than they actually were. They were not less drunk – they just thought they were.
"The other concern about drinking energy drinks and alcohol is that both caffeine and alcohol are diuretics, increasing the likelihood of dehydration, which may worsen the effects of a hangover," Holwegner says. "For this reason, and because of cardiovascular effects, it is not recommended to drink alcohol and energy drinks together." |
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