The "high" and "low" of an Energy Drink

Ingredients Found In Popular Energy Drinks And What They Do In The Body

Ephedrine : A stimulant that works on the central nervous system. It is a common in weight loss products and decongestants, but their have been concerns about its effects on heart.

Taurine    : A natural amino acid produced by body that helps regulate heat beat and muscle contractions.
 Many health experts are not sure what effect it has a drink additive.

Ginseng    : A root believed by some to have several medicinal properties, including reducing stress and boosting energy levels.

B-vitamins : A group of vitamins that can convert sugar to energy and improve muscle tone.

Guarana seed : A stimulant that comes from a small shrub native to Venezuela and Brazil.

Carnitine   :  An animal acid that plays an important role in fatty acid and metabolism.

Creatine    :  An organic acid that helps supply energy for muscle contractions.

Inositol     :  A member of the vitamin B complex that help relay messages within cells of the body.

 Ginkgo biloba : Made from the seeds of ginkgo biloba tree, thought to enhance memry.
  
Caffeine   : The most common stimulant, found in coffee, Coke and Mountain Dew. Found in much higher quantities in energy drinks. Most energy drinks contain between 70 and 200 mg. An 8 oz cup of coffee contains 110-150mg for drip, 65-125mg for percolated, and 40-80 mg for instant. Dr. Pepper gives you 41mg, and a can of Coke provides 34mg. A full can of RockStar has 160mg. Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system giving the body a sense of alertness. It can raise heart rate and blood pressure while dehydrating the body. A lot of people experience side effects above 200mg, which include sleeplessness, heart palpitations, headaches, nausea, and most commonly the jitters.

Anti-oxidants  : Anti-oxidants are things that help your body gracefully recover from the damage of free radicals. Vitamin C is an anti-oxidant, so claiming that your energy drink has a lot of anti-oxidants is like saying you’re buying really expensive orange juice. But they’re good, they help fend off illness and prevent cellular damage. Vitamins C and E, Vitamin A (aka retinol, beta-carotene), and selenium are all anti-oxidants.

Milk Thistle  : This ingredient mainly found in Rockstar and a few other drinks is used as a liver detoxifying agent. It is placed in energy drinks not really for any energy enhancing properties but as a counter agent to mixing energy drinks with alcohol as milk thistle is supposed to help with hangovers and detoxing the liver from alcohol. However, studies show that the amount put in energy drinks would be of hardly any benefit to consumers.

Acai Berry  : This ingredient (pronounced ah-sah-ee) is finding its way into more and more energy drinks. Acai berry comes from the Acai Palm tree which is found in South America. The berries are rich in anti-oxidants, but not as much as a concord grape or blueberry. Most of the acai berry benefits have no scientific basis and are attributed to marketing hype.