Do energy drinks come with health risks? An expert’s warning

Energy drinks are becoming more ubiquitous thanks to endless promotion by social media personalities. One of the most well-known brands, Prime—which raked in $16.2 million in the first quarter of 2024, —gained even more visibility after Donald Trump and Elon Musk were recently seen sipping on Prime Hydration, the company’s electrolyte drink, during the anticipated fight between influencer Jake Paul and former boxing legend Mike Tyson.

MIGHT AS WELL TRY THAT PRIME BARRON TOLD ME ABOUT!!!😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/OJv8ul5pZz

— il Donaldo Trumpo (@PapiTrumpo) November 17, 2024

But indulging in an energy drink comes with trade-offs, like potential side effects from high caffeine consumption and a laundry list of processed ingredients.

Here is what experts want you to know about energy drinks and their high dose of caffeine.

What is in energy drinks?

Each brand of energy drink will have its own ingredients, some more natural than others, but a study published in 2022 determined the following are the most common:

• Caffeine
• B-vitamins
• Sugar or artificial sweeteners
• Taurine
• Creatine
• Quercetin—a flavonoid with antioxidant-like properties
• Guarana—a plant containing caffeine
• Ginseng
• Branched chain amino acids (BCAAs) like leucine, isoleucine, and valine, which are essential building blocks of proteins and muscles often found in animal proteins.

Many energy drinks, including Monster or Prime Energy, often include artificial or natural flavoring, coloring, preservatives, and artificial sugars like sucralose and inositol.

Are energy drinks good or bad for you?

Caffeine is a stimulant that enhances focus, improves alertness, and can lower your perceived effort—making it a great performance enhancer, registered dietitian Susan Kitchen says. 

But what has dietitians like Kitchen concerned about energy drinks is the high caffeine content. In a 12-ounce can of Prime Energy, for example, there’s 200 milligrams of caffeine.

“This is way higher than coffee, espresso. This is a big hit,” Kitchen tells Fortune. Coffee has about 95 mg of caffeine in an 8-ounce cup.

Other popular energy drinks have similar doses of caffeine. Celsius has 200 mg of caffeine in a 12-ounce can, while Monster Energy has 160 mg in a 16-ounce can. 

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration advises that adults should not exceed 400 milligrams of caffeine in a day. Two energy drinks later, and you are right at that limit.

Ingesting too much caffeine comes with serious side effects, Kitchen says. Too much caffeine can lead to increased heart rate, heart palpitations, high blood pressure, insomnia, anxiety, nausea, headache, or the jitters. Some people are more sensitive to caffeine than others and may have side effects from lower doses. 

Kitchen also says that drinking a high dose of caffeine in a short period could do more harm than good. Once the caffeine peaks, you’re likely in for a steep crash, she says.

“I could see that someone would really hit a low from something like [Prime],” she says.

How many energy drinks a day is safe?

Based on the FDA’s guidelines, people should limit themselves to no more than two energy drinks a day. 

But these energy drinks might not be the only source of caffeine people are ingesting, Kitchen points out. Coffee and tea would easily push someone past that 400 mg limit, leading to high caffeine concentrations in their system—and, according to Kitchen, caffeine takes about 12 hours to fully leave the body.

“For the everyday person, they should be very careful,” Kitchen says.

Is there a healthy energy drink?

Looking at the ingredients in Prime Energy—which are similar to those found in other energy drinks like Monster, Celsius, and Red Bull—Kitchen says she’d likely advise her clients to steer clear of it and similar energy drinks.

“There’s nothing in it that’s good for you,” she says.

Besides the high concentrations of caffeine, Kitchen says the artificial sugars like sucralose and inositol are also of concern. While the long-term effects are unknown, Kitchen says that these artificial sweeteners can lead to an upset stomach and it’s best to avoid them. A study published in 2023 linked zero-calorie sweeteners to increased risk of heart attack, stroke or death.

Meanwhile, a 2020 study found energy drink consumption was associated with insomnia, restlessness, shaking hands, and gastrointestinal upset.

Kitchen is concerned about the way these drinks are marketed towards younger consumers. Parents should encourage their kids not to purchase energy drinks, as the caffeine dose is too high for children and adolescents and could lead to some of the many side effects associated with too much caffeine.

“No one under the age of 18 should be drinking this at all,” Kitchen says. 

Ask yourself this before you reach for an energy drink

Before you crack open an energy drink, Kitchen suggests asking yourself: “Why do you need this drink?”

Often, people are reaching for an energy drink because of its name—they’re looking for more energy. But Kitchen says that marketing is misleading.

“Energy only comes from food or drinks with calories in them,” Kitchen tells Fortune. 

Even though caffeine can boost workout performance and enhance focus, that is a neurological effect—it isn’t actually providing you with the energy you need to exercise or go about your day. The only thing that can do that, she says, is calories.

When you ask yourself why you are looking for an energy boost, you may get to the root of some underlying health problems leading to low energy, Kitchen says—like not getting enough sleep, not eating enough, and fasting.

Nailing basic health habits might have you drinking fewer energy drinks, or at least not feeling like you need one or two to get through the day.

If you are inclined to choose a caffeinated drink, Nanci Guest, a sports dietitian at the University of Toronto, previously told Fortune it’s best to keep it simple and opt for coffee or tea—which, in moderation, are both associated with longevity and have other health benefits.

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