http://www.calgaryherald.com/health/your+energy+boost+healthy/4040400/story.html
Is your energy boost healthy?
High-sugar, high-caffeine drinks can jolt mental alertness, but may not be the healthiest choices
By Patrick Langston, Postmedia NewsDecember 30, 2010
Experts strongly recommend against combining energy drinks with alcohol.
Photograph by: Herald Archive, Getty Images, Postmedia News
End-of-term exams, marathon holiday shopping, the hamster wheel of everyday life: what wouldn't you give for a little extra boost?
But chugging cans of liquid energy may not be the best solution.
Red Bull, Full Throttle and Rockstar number among the numerous energy drinks jostling for consumer attention on store shelves. Ad campaigns boast that the drinks were developed for periods of increased mental and physical exertion and, promising to heighten wakefulness, the beverages are packed with sugar and caffeine.
Both ingredients can briefly reignite your get-up-and-go, but can have serious health effects.
With obesity and diabetes surging across North America, downing even more sugar isn't the healthiest choice.
Meanwhile, the high levels of caffeine in energy drinks have been associated with a cavalcade of adverse reactions following heavy consumption -- from anxiety and nausea to seizures and cardiac irregularities.
Health Canada says healthy adults shouldn't consume more than 400 milligrams of caffeine a day. Children aged 10 to 12 should be limited to 85 mg a day, and younger children even less.
A 250-mL bottle of Coca-Cola has 26 mg of caffeine, and a cup of coffee between 80 and 150 mg.
The energy drink Rockstar Burner contains 160 mg of caffeine per 500 mL, while a 75-mL bottle of Rockstar Energy Shot packs 200 mg of caffeine.
(Some drinks contain much less caffeine.)
Drink labels warn children and pregnant or breastfeeding women to avoid the beverages, while others should consume no more than one or two cans a day.
Dr. Ahmed El-Sohemy, a professor in the University of Toronto's department of nutritional sciences and an expert on the body's processing of caffeine, says insufficient evidence makes it difficult to pinpoint the dangers of over-consuming energy drinks.
"There's anecdotal evidence linked to death in some teens who consumed it and engaged in rigorous physical activity shortly after, but that's just anecdotal. There is evidence that caffeine may trigger a heart attack in . . . individuals who have an impaired caffeine metabolism (so-called "slow" caffeine metabolizers) based on their genetics."
El-Sohemy says the long-term effects of heavy caffeine consumption are unknown, but that caffeine withdrawal effects such as headaches are common. When combined with sugar, that could lead to "a form of dependency."
He also points out that in Canada, energy drinks fall under Natural Health Product regulations. But he adds that there is no limit to caffeine content, which companies must list on the can.
Ontario's Ministry of Health, meanwhile, says that while moderate use of energy drinks by adults is safe, the long-term effects of taurine, a common ingredient said to enhance alertness, is unknown.
Moreover, there's no scientific evidence to support claims that herbal ingredients, like ginseng and ginkgo biloba, improve performance.
Experts say to avoid energy drinks when exercising because caffeine, a mild diuretic, can heighten dehydration.
Also, don't drink them on an empty stomach and never mix with alcohol because the caffeine can create a false sense of awareness and self-control.
Is your energy boost healthy?
High-sugar, high-caffeine drinks can jolt mental alertness, but may not be the healthiest choices
By Patrick Langston, Postmedia NewsDecember 30, 2010
Experts strongly recommend against combining energy drinks with alcohol.
Photograph by: Herald Archive, Getty Images, Postmedia News
End-of-term exams, marathon holiday shopping, the hamster wheel of everyday life: what wouldn't you give for a little extra boost?
But chugging cans of liquid energy may not be the best solution.
Red Bull, Full Throttle and Rockstar number among the numerous energy drinks jostling for consumer attention on store shelves. Ad campaigns boast that the drinks were developed for periods of increased mental and physical exertion and, promising to heighten wakefulness, the beverages are packed with sugar and caffeine.
Both ingredients can briefly reignite your get-up-and-go, but can have serious health effects.
With obesity and diabetes surging across North America, downing even more sugar isn't the healthiest choice.
Meanwhile, the high levels of caffeine in energy drinks have been associated with a cavalcade of adverse reactions following heavy consumption -- from anxiety and nausea to seizures and cardiac irregularities.
Health Canada says healthy adults shouldn't consume more than 400 milligrams of caffeine a day. Children aged 10 to 12 should be limited to 85 mg a day, and younger children even less.
A 250-mL bottle of Coca-Cola has 26 mg of caffeine, and a cup of coffee between 80 and 150 mg.
The energy drink Rockstar Burner contains 160 mg of caffeine per 500 mL, while a 75-mL bottle of Rockstar Energy Shot packs 200 mg of caffeine.
(Some drinks contain much less caffeine.)
Drink labels warn children and pregnant or breastfeeding women to avoid the beverages, while others should consume no more than one or two cans a day.
Dr. Ahmed El-Sohemy, a professor in the University of Toronto's department of nutritional sciences and an expert on the body's processing of caffeine, says insufficient evidence makes it difficult to pinpoint the dangers of over-consuming energy drinks.
"There's anecdotal evidence linked to death in some teens who consumed it and engaged in rigorous physical activity shortly after, but that's just anecdotal. There is evidence that caffeine may trigger a heart attack in . . . individuals who have an impaired caffeine metabolism (so-called "slow" caffeine metabolizers) based on their genetics."
El-Sohemy says the long-term effects of heavy caffeine consumption are unknown, but that caffeine withdrawal effects such as headaches are common. When combined with sugar, that could lead to "a form of dependency."
He also points out that in Canada, energy drinks fall under Natural Health Product regulations. But he adds that there is no limit to caffeine content, which companies must list on the can.
Ontario's Ministry of Health, meanwhile, says that while moderate use of energy drinks by adults is safe, the long-term effects of taurine, a common ingredient said to enhance alertness, is unknown.
Moreover, there's no scientific evidence to support claims that herbal ingredients, like ginseng and ginkgo biloba, improve performance.
Experts say to avoid energy drinks when exercising because caffeine, a mild diuretic, can heighten dehydration.
Also, don't drink them on an empty stomach and never mix with alcohol because the caffeine can create a false sense of awareness and self-control.
