Energy drinks are a popular type of beverage that contain stimulant compounds. Typically marketed as caffeine alternatives towards younger crowds, energy drinks are the fastest growing segment in the beverage industry.
The energy drink industry is already valued at $53 billion, and continues to grow every day. In this article we’ll cover exactly what energy drinks are, and the demographics that primarily consume them.
Ingredients of energy drinks
The exact ingredients in energy drinks vary by brand, but some ingredients are common. It’s worth reading C4Energy’s article that goes more in-depth on the exact different ingredients between popular energy drink brands. But overall, ingredients you can expect to encounter include:
Caffeine
The main ingredient of energy drinks is caffeine. Energy drinks contain a huge amount of concentrated caffeine. Normally, it ranges between 100 to 400 milligrams which can be equal to 4 cups of coffee in one sitting.
Moreover, some studies show that caffeinated drinks do stimulate the nervous system. A minimum amount of caffeine before working out or training increases the endurance level and gives you a spike in performance.
Sugar
Another ingredient in energy drinks is sugar. In fact, energy drinks contain sugar in a quite high concentration. High amounts of sugar in the body will make fluid absorption awfully slow. The more time it takes for the blood to reabsorb the fluids from the small intestine, the slower the rehydration gets.
BCAA
Another side-ingredient of energy drinks is BCAA. BCAAs are an essential type of proteins which are found in your food. So, basically if you are consuming a healthy diet on a regular basis, you don’t need to consume extra dosage in terms of energy drinks.
The main problem here is that energy drinks don’t disclose the amount of BCAAs they include. Also, an increased amount of BCAAs is not good for health, as they make it hard for other amino acids to get absorbed by the body.
Who consumes energy drinks?
Several surveys show that mostly men between the ages of 18 to 34 consume most of the energy drinks available in the market. Energy drinks are perhaps most excessively consumed by teenagers, and there have been pushes to regulate the amount of caffeine in single cans of energy drinks like Monster and Rockstar.
While energy drinks are sometimes marketed as sports performance boosters, there are almost no professional athletes that would actually recommend using them as such. Even though an athlete may be sponsored by a popular energy drink or be seen holding an energy drink can at events, it is usually for promotional purposes and the cans are actually filled with water.
While professional athletes typically prefer water, Gatorade, and regular exercise as a natural energy booster, energy drinks seem to appeal to teenagers of a more sedentary lifestyle, such as during extended video gaming sessions. At an average of 110 calories per can (depending on brand), there’s also daily caloric intake to consider.
Are energy drinks good for you?
Both caffeine and sugar, the main ingredients of the energy drinks, result in dehydration. The link between hydration and athletic performance is quite strong.
Taken in moderation, energy drinks can provide a desirable short-term boost of energy. The key word though is “moderation”, and the resulting caffeine crash can make you reach for another energy drink to keep the effects going, which can become dangerously habit-forming and even addictive.
400mg of caffeine per day is considered safe for most adults, so use that as a guideline for your energy drink consumption, but also be aware of other ingredients and their toxicity levels.
