Washington, Aug 18 (ANI): The number of energy drinks available over the counter is unlimited these days, but how beneficial are these drinks really?
“Energy drinks typically feature caffeine and a combination of other ingredients, including taurine, sucrose, guarana, ginseng, niacin, pyridoxine and cyanocobalamin,” says Stephanie Ballard from Nova Southeastern University.
“Caffeine has been consistently been observed to enhance aerobic performance, although its effects on anaerobic performance may vary,” she added.
The impact of energy drinks on weight loss has different theories. Some data suggest that combined with exercise, they may lead to weight loss.
However, other studies suggest that users may get addicted to caffeine, with increasing calorie-burn and weight loss.
However, being loaded with sugar, energy drinks may be contributing to the obesity epidemic alongside less caffeinated, sugary drinks like soda, warned Ballard.
“For the National Collegiate Athletic Association, athletes are considered to be doping if urinary caffeine is greater than 15 µg/mL, which is about the same as drinking eight cups of coffee, each containing 100 mg of caffeine,” Ballard said.
Caffeine has been reported to cause insomnia, nervousness, arrhythmias, osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, pregnancy and childbirth complication, gastrointestinal upset and death.
But small amounts can be safe and still boost performance.
“Caffeine in amounts of up to 6 mg/kg may produce benefits with low risk of adverse effects,” she added.
The study was published in a recent issue of The Physician and Sportsmedicine. (ANI).
If you’re like me and sometimes get sleepy in the afternoon you are probably just caffeine deficient. Hyper energetic kids, who may be Ritalin deficient, can be easily treated by the doctor’s prescription pad. Experiencing the hot flashes that come with menopause? Yup, that’s an easy one to diagnose, you’re estrogen deficient.
Okay, both caffeine and Ritalin deficiencies seem way off tune, but not “estrogen deficiency” which has played lead fiddle in the menopause orchestra for 40 years. By recasting a “deficiency” as a disease, marketers shaped the ground to sell one of the most prescribed treatments in the history of the world – hormone “replacement” therapy.
Ever since Dr. Robert Wilson published his 1966 book, Feminine Forever, (he referred to menopausal women as “sexless caricatures of their former selves”), mongering menopause has been a well-orchestrated effort. Public relations firms hired by drug makers have used almost every PR trick in the book, employing camouflaged celebrities, fake grassroots campaigns, and professional associations for hire to continually riff on the “estrogen deficient” chord.
The music died for HRT in 2002 when a large clinical study found that using these drugs over the long term actually increased a woman’s cardiac and cancer risks. Suffice to say redefining the normal passage of life as a disease despite the potential risks of doing so is a technique sure to boost sales.
We’ve got the male version too – “andropause.” You have to ask if the fact that as we guys age, and get grumpy, less efficient in bed, and want to nap more often is a disease worth medicating? That handy list of symptoms has been repackaged into a dangerous condition of testosterone deficiency easily cured testosterone gel rubbed on your chest. Cue the music to the Six-Million Dollar Man as the voiceover intones: “Gentlemen, we can rebuild him.”
Ads for testosterone drugs encourage doctors to drill their middle-aged male patients with questions: “Are you tired? Moody? Have a low sexual interest? That checklist pretty well sums up most guys my age who are naturally losing their mojo, but the ad’s tagline says it all: “Getting old is natural. The goal … to make feeling old optional.”
For any mongered disease, there are those few at the extreme end of the spectrum who may well benefit from being medicated. Drugs may very much make their life better even if they remain in the dark about the long-term effects of those drugs.
It took us 40 years to discover that long-term HRT increased health risks in women, and there’s no quality studies of long-term use of testosterone replacement, whose side effects include acne, prostate disorders, skin irritation, impaired urination and abnormally large breasts. Growing breasts? Mmm, that would make me a bit grumpy.
At the end of the day you have to ask if calming hot flashes or gaining a little bit of extra mojo are worth any risks whatsoever because, how does one say this nicely, “You’re not actually sick!”
Given the rise and fall of hormone replacement therapy, and her twin brother testosterone replacement therapy, it’s worth remembering that there is a lot of money to be made telling healthy people they are sick.
Caffeine levels in energy drinks cause of new discord.
Beverage companies Coca-Cola, Red Bull India and Goldwin Healthcare are locked in a fresh battle with research institutes and consumer advocacy groups, this time over the cap on caffeine levels in energy drinks. To end the fracas, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), a regulatory body of the health ministry, has asked all stakeholders to come out with their views on the matter before a final decision is taken.
According to the Prevention of Food Adulteration (PFA) Act & Rules, caffeine levels in “carbonated beverages” should not exceed 145 mg per litre. However, activists against caffeine have said that typically energy drinks have caffeine levels to the tune of 320 mg per litre — way above the permissible mark. The brands in the market are Coca-Cola’s Burn, Goldwin Healthcare’s Cloud Nine and Red Bull India’s Red Bull.
Energy drink makers have argued that being clubbed under the category of carbonated beverages under PFA Act & Rules is incorrect since these products are actually “proprietary” in nature and in that category there is no cap on caffeine usage. “The label on the can clearly indicates that we are proprietary food,” said an executive from an energy drink firm who requested anonymity. “PFA Act & Rules does have the category of proprietary foods; otherwise how could we operate in the country? Under this category, there is no cap on the caffeine levels.” These companies have demanded a new category called “energy drinks” in which there should not be any cap on caffeine.
Companies such as Red Bull India, which is one of the leading players in the Rs 200-crore category, have had frequent run-ins with regulatory authorities such as the Food & Drug Authority of Maharashtra. Last year, it had seized large Red Bull stocks during multiple raids on its distributors in Mumbai. The matter then moved to the courts, which gave a verdict against Red Bull since the caffeine levels were above the permissible limit for carbonated beverages.
A spokesperson for Red Bull India said: “It would be speculative on our part to say anything at this stage since the matter is being discussed. But Red Bull fully complies with regulations in each of the 160 countries across the world where it is on sale. This includes India where the product has been legally marketed since 2000 as a proprietary food under PFA Act & Rules.”
Legal experts, on their part, said that the term ‘proprietary foods’ is actually loosely defined in the PFA Act. “Everything that is not standardised is treated as proprietary,” said a legal expert with a fast-moving consumer goods company. It is this loose definition that institutions like the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), which have been closely associated with the preparation of legislation on food, have said the energy drinks manufacturers are taking advantage of.
Kushal Pal Singh Yadav, a researcher and coordinator on food safety issues at CSE, said: “There is no category called proprietary foods under PFA Act & Rules. The energy drink firms use this loose definition to legitimise the high incidence of caffeine in their products. The caffeine levels have to be regulated in beverage products. That is what the law of the land prescribes.” He also said that it would be incorrect to create a separate category for energy drinks: “By asking for a separate category these firms once again are seeking to legitimise the high level of caffeine in their products.”
The West Australian branch of the Australian Medical Association (AMA) says the State Government needs to make sure doctors are not overworked while attempting to meet the four hour rule.
A number of health workers have reported to the AMA that young doctors are using energy drinks and caffeine pills to stay awake while working extended hours.
The association is in talks with the Health Department to address the issue.
AMA state president David Mountain says patients will be put at risk unless the State Government provides extra funds to address the issue.
“There are clearly some shifts that junior doctors are doing that are very long and arduous,” he said.
“With the four hour rule being introduced, you’ve got to make sure we’ve got the right staffing and the right funding arrangements in place to make sure that happens safely.”
Health Minister Kim Hames says he will investigate the claims.
“Young doctors shouldn’t be taking tablets and shouldn’t have to be doing that sort of shift, so I’m surprised I have to say to hear that there’s some suggestion that they might be and I’ll just have to make sure that they’re not doing that,” he said.
Coffee is probably the most consumed beverage on the planet and there are many reasons why. It’s both a stimulant and a laxative. So it wakes you up and makes you go… in more ways than one. For marketing purposes, coffee is often cited as a high antioxidant beverage, which may account for a recent flood of media reports that coffee is a health drink!
But, let’s face it, if you analyze any plant for its contents you are bound to find antioxidants. That’s what plants have in abundance. It’s their job to make antioxidants. Non-edible plants like willow bark, spruce needles, pine bark and birch wood are also high in antioxidants. That doesn’t mean we have to eat them!
Whether coffee is good or bad is relative and based on the individual. Let me to help you decide whether you are addicted and what to do about it.
If your blood thins out a bit and circulates better because your heart is stimulated by coffee and you are not as constipated when drinking java — yes, you are the lucky recipient of its benefits. But if you are already stressed to the max, adrenalin pumping nonstop and addicted to other stimulants like alcohol and sugar, it’s not your friend. In your case, coffee is simply adding to your stress load and your toxic load.
An accumulation of stimulants can make your heart jumpy and set your nerves on edge. In a certain group of stressed‐out and toxic folks, even one cup of coffee can be enough to trigger a racing heart and even heart palpitations. Coffee is a natural diuretic and can’t help but eliminate magnesium, potassium and sodium from your body! And you’re none the wiser.
You may even be making trips to your doctor or the emergency room with your heart beating wildly and nobody asks you if you are a coffee addict. I’ve had clients on six cups of coffee a day taking medications for coffee-induced heart arrhythmia! Now that’s scary when you’re taking a calcium-blocking drug to treat the effects of a magnesium deficiency caused by coffee.
How do you know you’re addicted?
Simple, when you try to stop, you get a pounding headache — that can’t be healthy.
The only way out is to cut it out! The good news is that you don’t have to go cold turkey. Here’s my prescription. Start by taking magnesium supplements. You’ve been losing magnesium for as long as you’ve been drinking coffee, so it’s time for payback. Magnesium citrate powder is a good form to begin with. You can also find magnesium glycinate and magnesium dimalate pills in health food stores or online. Unless you are extremely constipated, stay away from magnesium oxide because it’s only 4 percent absorbed so the other 96 percent can act like a strong laxative.
Magnesium is the body’s natural energizer. It balances muscle and nerve tension caused by calcium. It also relaxes the bowel, so it has its own gentle laxative effect. Magnesium is calming because it neutralizes adrenalin surges, which prevents anxiety and treats insomnia. All of which are the opposite of coffee’s effects. Magnesium is responsible for over 325 enzyme systems in the body with body-wide beneficial effects
Plan a time two to three weeks after starting magnesium to wean off coffee; you will be amazed how easy it can be. With magnesium under your belt, switch to black tea for one week only. Then stop black tea and switch to herbal teas or a grain coffee substitute, available in health food stores.
If you need some additional help, here it is:
1. For withdrawal symptoms of irritability, sensitivity and headaches take homeopathic Chamomilla 12X (one dose, 3‐4 times a day). Magnesium is also an effective treatment for headaches.
2. If you experience insomnia, take homeopathic Coffea 12X, one dose 3-4 times a day. You can also increase your magnesium intake by one more dose.
Take both remedies for one week after you’ve stopped all caffeine. Remember to read labels, because some herb teas, especially green tea, can be caffeinated.
Saunas, steam rooms, hot baths with Epsom salts and more magnesium will all help to detoxify coffee and it’s metabolites through your skin. You will be surprised when you start smelling coffee in your sweat! Believe it or not, clay is a great way to detox. Get some natural clay powder and simply blend up 1/2 cup in your blender with lots of water and pour that into a foot bath or tub. Soak for in hot water for 30 min and wash or shower off.
Giving up coffee is often the first step on your pathway to better health. When you have more daytime energy and nighttime sleep, you’ll only want to take the next step — cut back on sugar! Stay tuned.