energy drink | Caffeine and You

Taking Risks: Energy Drinks and Alcohol

January 3, 2013 By Kate Heyhoe

Got a thirst? Need a boost? Slurp down a can, or two – or more – of a refreshing, cold energy drink. Within minutes, moderate to high amounts of caffeine are churning through your brain and body. A moderate dose can be safe, even desirable. Too much caffeine, though, and you get the shakes, hands tremble, heartbeat races, and caffeine intoxication takes over. Like alcohol, the effects are intense, and they diminish over time.

This 16-ounce can of Xenergy contains 208 mg caffeine, considered very high; a same size Coke has 45 mg

Then there’s the problem of mixing caffeine with alcohol. Energy drinks and alcohol together are double-trouble. Caffeine does not reduce the effects of alcohol. You may feel more alert, but you’re just as impaired by the alcohol.

Studies have found that the combination of energy drinks and alcohol is more dangerous than drinking alcohol alone; caffeine’s stimulating buzz makes people less aware of being drunk. They perceive themselves as more in control than they really are; they’re likely to drink more alcohol, or feel confident about driving safely, for instance.

The effects go beyond mental perception; the physical risks are real, too. Caffeine is a stimulant. Alcohol is a depressant. Together they send mixed messages to the nervous system and the heart. The combination is especially risky for people with heart rhythm problems.

Teen deaths have been attributed to minor or undiagnosed cardiac problems and high caffeine, delivered in extreme doses by energy drinks. High levels of caffeine can boost heart rate and blood pressure in some people, causing palpitations. Some teens weren’t yet aware they had cardiac conditions, which under normal circumstances had never proved problematic.

Energy Drink Regulations Teeter on Teen Safety

Energy drinks make high caffeine consumption easy, especially in young people.

When energy drinks were linked to teenage deaths, the FDA became pressured to increase regulation and even ban energy drinks altogether. Some, including U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, say energy drinks use FDA loopholes to circumvent rules about caffeine content.

Motivated by the prospect of increased regulation, companies have slightly modified how they market energy drinks and soft drinks, especially to teens – a few have even altered their caffeine content and reclassified their products with the FDA as soft drinks, rather than dietary supplements. Chapter 5 outlines how energy drink and soft drink makers are choosing to list caffeine, including new marketing strategies by the ABA (American Beverage Association).

Conclusion

Energy drinks are as sweet, cold and bubbly as soda pop. They go down fast and easy. Some come in large containers, double or triple the size of a standard cup of coffee. Anyone could slurp up several cans in a day, especially thirsty athletes. But there’s a difference: energy drinks are often many times more caffeinated than sodas. Energy drinks can range from 50 to 500 mg of caffeine per container – while a 12-ounce can of Coke contains 34 mg of caffeine.

Energy shots aren’t bubbly. Most don’t even taste good. But since a 2-ounce shot amounts to just 1/4 cup, you can slam down 50 to 200 mg of caffeine in one or two quick gulps.

And this is where most criticism lies: With energy drinks and shots, it’s easy to quickly consume too much caffeine – especially unintentionally. Most people don’t realize that caffeine is biphasic: it’s safe in low to moderate doses, but can be risky in high doses. Soft drinks have a legal limit to the caffeine they may contain, and most are about as potent as brewed tea. Energy drinks and shots have no such limit. And just finding the amount of caffeine a product contains requires keen eyesight to read tiny print on labels, or in some cases, some online research.

Both soft drinks and energy drinks reflect flavors, packaging, and marketing designed to appeal to teenagers and children. But young people have brains and bodies that are still developing and don’t handle the drug’s effects in the same way as adults. From chocolates to coffee, and sodas to energy drinks, caffeine’s an everyday part of society. But no one wins when caffeine is taken in unsafe amounts. Chapter 11 dives deeper into the effects of caffeine in young people, as well as newborns and pregnant women.

In the next chapter: Store shelves buzz with new caffeinated products, from MIO to maple syrup, keeping everyone from Israeli pilots to average drivers alert.

Caffeine Basics: Table of Contents

Death by Caffeine Powder

January 4, 2013 By Kate Heyhoe

The young man was partying, having a good time with friends. It was a normal weekend, and for kicks, he tried something new. He chugged down some white powder, not much – a couple of teaspoons – with a can of Red Bull. Before the night was over, he’d be dead.

In 2010, Michael Lee Bedford, a 23-year old British man, died from caffeine overdose: the two teaspoons he swallowed were caffeine powder. His friend had purchased the pure caffeine over the Internet for £3.29 (about $5.50). It’s commonly sold as anhydrous caffeine powder.

The powder’s label recommended that dosage not exceed one-sixteenth of a teaspoon, smaller than the size of a pea. But Bedford never saw the label.

Bedford’s blood contained the caffeine equivalent of 70 energy drinks. And unlike caffeinated beverages, it took him but a few seconds to ingest it. That extreme amount of caffeine causes serious reactions in the body, most notably rapid heart beat and seizures. Coffee, tea, chocolate and guarana contain caffeine, but you’d have a hard time drinking or eat these naturally caffeinated products fast enough, before your body would start rejecting them.

According to an ABC News report, Bedford’s family has a strong message about the dangers of caffeine powder. “I feel like it should be banned,” his grandmother said. His aunt agreed, adding “I think there should be a warning on it saying it can kill.”

What is Anhydrous Caffeine Powder?

Caffeine is synthesized by boiling plant parts (like stems, beans, and leaves) in water. After the plant parts are removed and the water evaporates, what’s left is a dry, white, crystalline powder, known as anhydrous caffeine (anhydrous means “without water”).

The process greatly concentrates caffeine’s potency. Anhydrous caffeine is a pharmaceutical substance mixed into medicines, weight-loss and energy products, and a full range of dietary supplements. When it’s an ingredient in foods or beverages, nutrition labels list it simply as caffeine. But in its pure state, the bitter-tasting powder is a highly concentrated drug.

The warning label on one brand of anhydrous caffeine powder advises not to exceed 200 mg in 24 hours (which is about 1/10th of a teaspoon). A lethal dose of caffeine depends on many factors, including a person’s weight, age, and health status. But whether it’s the caffeine in powdered form or in a cup of coffee, amounts as low as 300 mg can lead to adverse reactions in some people. But you’d have to drink about 100 cups of coffee before the caffeine in it would kill you, and you’d probably be shaking too much after the first few cups to continue (not to mention the nausea and gastric reactions).

Anhydrous caffeine powder, though, is concentrated enough to produce toxic and even lethal effects within minutes, and in as little as a spoonful. Suppliers of anhydrous caffeine powder recommend using a gram scale to accurately measure dosage. The safety warnings on anhydrous caffeine products vary. Some advise that 200 mg is the limit, while others warn that 200-500 mg per day is the max. But every person is different.

Caffeine is safe in low doses, but high doses are risky

For example, the anhydrous caffeine sold at BulkSupplements posts this notice:

Taking too much caffeine at once can cause elevated blood pressure, restlessness, headaches, irritability, nausea, and increased heart rate which could be very dangerous. It should also be noted that caffeine is extremely toxic in large doses. The larger the doses the more likely one is to experience negative side effects, and the more intense those negative side effects will be. In some cases large doses of caffeine beyond the recommended daily value could even be fatal. This information is not to be taken lightly.

Conclusion

The bottom-line for all caffeinated products is this: Know how much you’re taking, and use common sense.

Regardless of what the label does or does not say, consumers need to be aware that caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant, a drug that affects the body and brain. In low to moderate doses it’s generally recognized as safe for most people. But high doses of caffeine can be dangerous and, as this report shows, even lethal.

The problem with extreme caffeinated products:

Consumers don’t read labels, and in some cases the label isn’t clear about the caffeine amount contained. So high doses are easy to consume, even unintentionally.
Caffeine Basics: Table of Contents

5. Wacky Regulations and Misguided Marketing

January 5, 2013 By Kate Heyhoe

The FDA does not require warning labels on highly caffeinated products, but this may change.

Sometimes caffeine amounts are listed on a label – and sometimes they’re not.

FDA and Energy Products Face Scrutiny

Even though caffeine is a drug, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration treats it differently depending on the type of product it’s in – such as medicines, dietary supplements, or food – which makes for a world of consumer confusion.

In the U.S., the FDA considers caffeine safe enough to permit people of all ages to consume it. Regulations for some food and drinks do limit caffeine amounts, restrict marketing claims, and set up guidelines for consumer information. But in other cases, regulations are almost nonexistent.

Internationally, a few countries have taken the lead in establishing more rigorous consumer labels and guidelines, especially on energy drinks. Because several teen deaths have been claimed to be linked to energy drinks, the FDA is scrutinizing the entire caffeinated-product industry, but has yet to make any real policy changes. Some energy drinks have toned-down their marketing tactics to teens and kids, to avoid further scrutiny and public backlash.

Some beverage companies in the U.S. – like Monster Energy – are voluntarily changing their labels, or in some cases, their formulas, in responses to public pressure. They’re no longer dietary supplements, but instead are beverages, and this means different labeling, but with the same amount of caffeine.

Even the FDA admits the rules on caffeine are a little wacky. While the rules haven’t changed in decades, the products they regulate have changed, in ways no one would anticipate.

The following sections cover the basics on caffeine labeling, with tips every consumer should know.

Caffeine Basics: Table of Contents

Is Caffeine a Drug or a Food?

January 5, 2013 By Kate Heyhoe

Caffeine blocks adenosine receptors, and changes other processes in the brain

Technically, caffeine is a type of psychotropic drug (also called a psychoactive drug). That is, it affects the central nervous system and alters brain activities associated with mental processes, perception and behavior.

Caffeine: Listed or Hidden?

When caffeine occurs naturally (as in coffee, tea, or chocolate), the FDA does not require caffeine to be listed as a separate ingredient. So a Hershey’s Kiss or bottle of Starbuck’s Frappuccino doesn’t need to specify caffeine. Nor does an energy drink when the caffeine is part of a natural botanical source, like guarana or yerba mate.

But when caffeine is present as an additive, the FDA does require it to be listed as an ingredient; this applies to foods, beverages, over-the-counter and prescription medicines, and dietary supplements – which include energy drinks and energy shots – but not to soft drinks.

Sodas are not dietary supplements. Soft drink makers got a special pass from the FDA back in 1980, when they argued caffeine was added just as a flavor enhancer – a claim that appears to be more myth than fact. Consequently, they are not required by the FDA to list the amount of added caffeine they contain, though the amount must not exceed 71 mg per 12 ounces. Only recently do some soft drink makers voluntarily print caffeine amounts on their labels, which we’ll get into later.

A Monster Energy Example

In 2013, Monster Energy – and a few other energy drinks – switched from being classified as a dietary supplement to being classified as a food (or specifically, a beverage). Monster’s formula is the same, and it still loads the same amount of caffeine, but the information on the can is different.

The new Monster can sports a Nutrition Facts panel and adds “CAFFEINE FROM ALL SOURCES: 80 mg PER 8 FL. OZ.”

The old Monster wore a Supplement Facts label and the standard dietary supplement disclaimer that reads “These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.” The old Monster also lists caffeine, but not the amount, and only as an ingredient in its proprietary “Energy Blend,” which also includes guarana, inositol, glucose and other substances.

Here’s what’s puzzling for consumers: Unlike sodas which are limited to 71 mg per 12 ounces, the recategorized new Monster contains much more than 71 mg per 12 ounces; an 8-ounce portion still delivers 80 mg of caffeine. Which points out the flaws in the FDA’s regulations. Many would argue that the fizzy sweet Monster Energy drink tastes and looks just like a soft drink.

Even the FDA’s deputy commissioner Michael R. Taylor says the rules on caffeinated products appear to be outdated, and the agency is looking at ways to revamp them.

Caffeine Confusion for Consumers

So, if it looks like a soda, and tastes like a soda, but it’s more caffeinated than a cup of coffee, it’s probably an energy drink. If the FDA classifies the energy drink as a type of dietary supplement, caffeine may be added in any amount as long as it’s not known to be harmful. (Terms like energy drink and energy shot are purely marketing terms, not FDA categories.)

In the U.S., whenever an energy drink, energy shot and energy gel or other caffeinated edible is approved by the FDA as a “dietary supplement,” it’s permitted to be sold without limits to the caffeine content, because the FDA does not consider them food. So even though caffeine is a stimulant drug, it’s not regulated as a drug by the FDA – when it’s an ingredient in a dietary supplement.

Things get especially murky when you realize that a Starbucks Doubleshot Energy drink is considered a food, while a Java Monster Loca Moca is a dietary supplement, yet both contain the same amount of caffeine in a 15-ounce can.

To the average consumer, they’re all just caffeinated beverages.

How to tell the difference? Look at the label:

Supplement Facts – appears on dietary supplements
Nutrition Facts – appears on foods (and beverages)

When a product is classified as a dietary supplement, it gets to play by different rules, as the next section explains…

Caffeine Basics: Table of Contents

What Exactly Is a Dietary Supplement?

January 5, 2013 By Kate Heyhoe

Energy shots are regulated as dietary supplements

Energy shots, like energy drinks, are regulated as dietary supplements

Caffeinated energy drinks, energy shots, sports gels, weight-loss products, caffeinated gum, and other caffeine-added products are typically regulated as dietary supplements; though as the previous section explains, some energy drinks are now reclassifying themselves as beverages.

So what constitutes a dietary supplement, and how did FDA regulations get to be so loose?

The FDA defines a dietary supplement as a product taken by mouth that contains a “dietary ingredient” intended to supplement the diet.

The “dietary ingredients” in these products may include: vitamins, minerals, herbs or other botanicals, amino acids, and substances such as enzymes, organ tissues, glandulars, and metabolites. Dietary supplements can also be extracts or concentrates, and may be found in many forms such as tablets, capsules, softgels, gelcaps, liquids, or powders.

At first, the FDA considered dietary supplements to only consist of such essential nutrients as vitamins, minerals, and proteins. In 1990, “herbs, or similar nutritional substances” were allowed.

In 1994, dietary supplement rules were expanded to allow non-essential nutrients, such as ginseng, garlic, enzymes, fish oil, and caffeine, for instance. Congress heeded to lobbyists and passed the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA).

As long as makers of dietary supplements made no unsubstantiated claims that their products treated, prevented or cured diseases, FDA barriers were dropped.

Today, the FDA puts no limits on the serving sizes or amounts of ingredients in dietary supplements. Manufacturers are responsible for ensuring their products are safe, and if an ingredient is itself new, the FDA must first review the safety data on it. But otherwise, dietary supplements are pretty loosey-goosey; they don’t need FDA approval before marketing.

The Dietary Supplement Disclaimer

We’ve all seen labels that read:

“This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.”

In the U.S., dietary supplements can’t promote themselves as cures. But dietary supplements can make three types of claims:

health claims – the link between food substance and disease or health condition
structure/function claims – the intended benefits of using the product
nutrient content claims – the amount of a nutrient or dietary substance in a product.

So the FDA allows for some pretty wide leeway on labels, and puts the onus of truthfulness on the manufacturer. According to the FDA:

“In general, these claims describe the role of a nutrient or dietary ingredient intended to affect the structure or function of the body. The manufacturer is responsible for ensuring the accuracy and truthfulness of these claims; they are not approved by FDA.”

Dietary supplements must include a disclaimer that the FDA has not evaluated their claims, and must also state that the product is not intended to “diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease,” because only a drug can legally make such a claim. (Additionally, the Federal Trade Commission regulates marketing claims in advertising materials.)

How Is Caffeine Listed on a Dietary Supplement?

According to the FDA, the “Supplements Facts” panel must list all dietary ingredients, including caffeine. But caffeine comes in many forms, which may not be obvious on the label. Besides caffeine, a label may list guarana, maté, chocolate, cacao, tea, or coffee. These ingredients also deliver a caffeine buzz, but they don’t have to be specified as “caffeine.”

The “Other Ingredients” statement lists ingredients that the FDA says “could include the source of dietary ingredients, if not identified in the Supplement Facts panel (e.g., rose hips as the source of vitamin C), other food ingredients (e.g., water and sugar), and technical additives or processing aids (e.g., gelatin, starch, colors, stabilizers, preservatives, and flavors).”

You’ll often find guarana and yerba mate (or mate) listed as “Other Ingredients,” especially in energy drinks and shots.

Caffeine Basics: Table of Contents