Special Report: Investigating Energy Drinks

Drinking strong coffee or a caffeinated soda used to be the most popular ways to get a quick energy boost. That all started changing about 15 years ago when the most well known energy drinks started appearing on U.S. markets. Now energy drinks is a multi–billion dollar industry.

Drinks like these have become a go–to for consumers looking for a quick energy boost. You can find them on store shelves all over the Northland, but should you be concerned about the ingredients inside these cans?

Mike Letica is in charge of running several convenience stores. His stores have continued using more shelf space to stock and sell energy drinks. 

Mike Letica says, “I used to have three, four, five cooler doors of soda and now I have about two, and energy drinks themselves are having two doors also.” 

His employees sell lots of energy drinks to customers around the clock.

“It’s just really different. It’s all day long. It’s not an afternoon; it’s not just a morning. It’s actually replacing coffee too,” Letica said.

So who is buying all these energy drinks? Market research shows about two thirds of them are purchased by people between the ages of 13 and 65, and the buyers are mostly male.

Here on the UMD campus energy drinks are very common. Savannah Hanson is a senior at UMD. She works over night shifts and goes to school full time. She says if she wants to graduate, energy drinks are her only option.

“In order to keep myself awake during the overnight and actually at school to study, I chug one of these in the morning.” 

Medical professionals have been concerned about the possible health impact of energy drinks for a while now. The biggest worry centers around the very high caffeine level and some other ingredients which could be potentially harmful.

Many energy drinks are considered a dietary supplement by the U.S Food and Drug Administration. Those energy drink companies don’t have to include a nutrition facts label.

The most popular drinks, Red bull, Monster, and Rockstar are considered conventional beverages. Those brands must go through the FDA. But the companies still are not required to disclose exactly how much caffeine and other stimulants the drinks contain. Energy drinks also don’t have an age limit requirement to purchase the beverage. 

Janelle Gomez, a registered dietitian for St. Luke’s says, “Caffeine and other beverages containing a mix of the taurine and the carnitine, and those other energy blends. They have no place in a young person and pediatrics patient’s diet and intake.”

Energy shots, like 5 Hour Energy, are also being researched by health professionals. 

“We recognized that, that’s a lot of caffeine going in all at once, so it’s certainly going to hit your nervous system much faster,” Gomez said.

Experts don’t necessarily suggest you never consume energy drinks, but since all the possible health effects are still unclear, alternatives like drinking a glass of milk or water, and eating snacks packed with protein and complex carbohydrates are other recommended ways to help avoid the afternoon slump.

Gomez says,”You can find a lot of great food sources that provide all of the same, say, energy effects and providing a lot more nutrition.”

Energy drink consumers like Savannah Hanson are not real concerned about the possible health impact. She says she eventually plans to stop buying these products, but as of now has no worries.

“As of right now I got to get through college, I’m a senior right now, so this is helping me get through my day.” 

The most recent numbers show people are purchasing 50 billion dollar’s worth of drinks around the world each year.