High Energy Drinks Can Pack More Than A “Pick Me Up” Punch

High-energy drinks have increased in popularity over the past several years, especially among impressionable teens and young adults, who are totally unaware of the dangers posed by high levels of caffeine contained in them. These beverages are known for having an enticingly sweet taste and being packed with more caffeine punch than coffee.

In 2007, a survey of 496 college students resulted in 51percent of them having consumed at least one energy drink within the prior 30 days. In addition, 27 percent said they had mixed alcohol with energy drinks at least once during the past month. This could be dangerous to a person’s health as well as due to the fact that users may believe themselves to be alert enough to drive when, in fact, they are intoxicated. Additionally, in another study, college students who used energy drinks were found to be more likely to later use stimulants.

After conducting in-depth research on these popular beverages, a group of scientists at the Johns Hopkins University has found them to contain potentially harmful levels of caffeine, with some drinks having up to 14 times the caffeine of a regular can of soda. This is the equivalent to seven cups of very strong coffee.

In the report, published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence, Dr. Roland Griffiths writes that 41 cases of caffeine abuse from these beverages were reported to U.S. poison control centers between 2002 and 2004. As an example, nine cases of adverse reactions reported were from the energy drink known as Redline, in which the patients reported experiencing nausea, vomiting, high blood pressure, tremors, dizziness and numbness.

Griffiths wrote that the drinks should carry warning labels that would not only display the caffeine content, but also health risks including nervousness, anxiety, insomnia, rapid heartbeat and tremors. These warning labels have not been required to date because energy drinks that contain caffeine are sold as supplementary drinks instead of soft drinks. Because of this, the caffeine content does not have to comply with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s maximum caffeine content for soda and other beverages, which is 71 milligrams per 12-ounce can.

Maureen Storey, Ph.D., a spokeswoman for the American Beverage Association said regarding the report, “It's a review, not a study,” and noted, “We need to be careful about taking too much out of one review. He looked at some studies.” She went on to explain that if labels should be required on energy drinks, coffeehouse coffee should also be required to label caffeine content.

In a statement issued by the association, most mainstream energy drinks contain only 160 milligrams of caffeine, which is half the 320 milligrams of caffeine found in a regular 16-ounce cup of coffeehouse coffee. (The National Institutes of Health defines moderate caffeine intake as three 8-ounce cups of coffee daily and excessive intake as ten 8-ounce cups of coffee per day). The association also maintains that most companies market their energy drinks responsibly while only a few novelty companies do not. Additionally, the statement reads, “Energy drinks can be part of a balanced lifestyle when consumed sensibly.”

Over 24 energy drink manufacturers were contacted by Griffiths and colleagues for requests of caffeine content of their products which included high caffeine content products such as Wired X505 having 505 mg per 24-oz serving, Fixx having 500 per 20-oz serving, No Fear having 174 mg per 16-oz serving, Monster and Rockstar having 160 mg per 16-oz serving, Tab Energy having 95 mg per 10.5-oz serving, and Red Bull containing 80 milligrams per 8.3-ounce serving. Some of the energy drinks were found to have lower caffeine contents such as Bomba Energy with 75 mg per 8.4-oz serving and Whoop Ass with 50 mg per 8.5-oz serving.

In comparison, according to the researchers, the caffeine contents of brewed coffee is 200 milligrams per 12-oz serving, with instant coffee containing 140 mg per 12-oz serving, and brewed tea having 80 mg per 12-oz serving. Some soft drink caffeine levels include Mountain Dew containing 54 mg per 12 oz. serving, Dr. Pepper with 41 mg per 12-oz serving, Pepsi Cola having 38 mg per 12-oz serving, Coca-Cola Classic having 34.5 mg per 12-oz serving and canned or bottled tea containing 20 mg per 12-oz serving.