41 Energy Drink Recipes

Energy drinks mostly contain caffeine, taurine, l-carnitine, carbohydrates, glucuronolactone, vitamins, and other herbal supplements like ginseng and guarana among others. Additives such as guarana, yerba mate, cocoa, and kola nut may increase the caffeine content of energy drinks unbeknownst to consumers, as manufacturers of these products are not required to include the caffeine content of these herbal supplements in the nutritional information.

Caffeine is one of the most commonly consumed alkaloids worldwide in the form of coffee, tea, or soft drinks, and in high doses may cause abnormal stimulation of the nervous system 4 as well as adverse effects in the cardiovascular, hematologic, and gastrointestinal systems. The market and degree of consumption of energy drinks is increasing every year, 5 , 6 and while only few have detailed knowledge of their potential harmful physiological and psychological effects, the number of publications that have documented the potential adverse risks associated with the use of these beverages remains small.

A list of the top selling energy drinks and contents appears in Table 1. The identified articles were then reviewed. Inclusion criteria were publication in English; peer-reviewed journal; and a study, of any design, focusing on energy drink consumption and its effects on quality of life and psychological functioning. The titles and abstracts identified by the first search were read by authors CU and WI.

The two authors agreed independently on selected studies. Each selected study or article was analyzed by type of study, number of persons, age, psychological effects, main ingredient or type of energy drink consumed, and frequency or quantity consumed. Due to the large and nonspecific number of search results obtained via a Pubmed search using the search term energy drinks yielding articles and tonic drinks yielding 21 articles , the authors used more specific search terms to target the subject of this review. Search terms that had greater specificity included energy drinks and and the following: Of the 11 articles found using the term energy drinks and quality of life , none specifically addressed the effect of energy drinks on QOL, thus they were excluded from this review.

Following this extensive literature search, 41 articles were included as they were clinical trials or reviews that demonstrated a clear effect of an ingredient or several ingredients in energy drinks on QoL as it relates to psychological functioning. Most energy drinks contain caffeine, which is a stimulant. Studies researching taurine, one of the other ingredients in energy drinks, revealed that it may interact negatively with caffeine and alcohol due to its effect on cell volume and renal-mediated transport. Thus the effects of interactions between the components in energy drinks seem to be as important to study as the effect of each single ingredient.

Several studies have evaluated the specific ingredients in these beverages for potential benefits. A double-blind, randomized, controlled study by Childs et al 9 sought to find the beneficial role of caffeine. Participants were asked to stay awake from 5pm to 5am, with the treatment group receiving a mg caffeine-containing supplement and the control group receiving placebo at 3: Despite experiencing prolonged wakefulness, subjects that received the caffeine pill had significantly improved reaction times when completing the computer tasks and questionnaires.

In addition to cognitive performance, the subjective mood state of participants also seemed to improve with the help of the caffeine supplement. In attempting to replicate this study, the authors of this review article propose that subjects are given an energy drink with predetermined amounts of caffeine to consume while performing the tasks designed for this trial.

In a study by Clauson et al, 10 the authors attempted to link the various ingredients in energy drinks to potential beneficial or adverse effects. In studying this specific aspect of the beverages and identifying these potential links, the authors hypothesized that they would be better able to evaluate whether the amount of specific ingredients contributed to the elucidated benefits or adverse effects. After identifying what they found to be the most common risks insomnia, nervousness, headache, and tachycardia , the authors also reported the finding of four documented case reports of caffeine-associated deaths, as well as four separate cases of seizures associated with the consumption of energy drinks.

3 Homemade Energy Drink Recipes | Hello Glow

Energy drinks and cognitive functions. Energy drinks are known to improve mental performance. For example, concentration and memory immediate recall improved in a study of 36 volunteers who consumed Red Bull energy drink. Three studies published in two articles by Kennedy and Scholey demonstrate the positive effects of energy drinks on cognitive performance. The researchers rated subject performance a total of seven times per study, once before a drink was consumed and six times after. A total of two studies were conducted with 30 and 26 participants, respectively.

In the second study, participants received two drinks on two separate occasions: The accuracy of the RVIP performance was improved in subjects that drank the glucose-caffeine beverages. Mental fatigue was also rated lower in the sub-set of participants that received the higher dose of caffeine in the first study and those who received the glucose-caffeine beverage in the second study.

In a separate study published by the same authors, the investigators evaluated cognitive performance and mood state following administration of an energy drink as well as beverages consisting of the individual components of the energy drink. Cognitive performance and mood were assessed for each participant in each drink condition immediately prior to drink administration and 30 minutes after. There was a seven-day washout period between each of the five groups.

In regard to the individual components of the drinks, none led to significantly improved performance on tasks assessed, but caffeine alone demonstrated a trend toward significance on quality of memory, delayed word recognition, and accuracy of attention, which may be borne out with a larger study sample. There were no significant differences between groups on measures of mood.

The investigators concluded that evidence from this study suggests some connection exists between the cognition-modulating effects of glucose and caffeine. The effect of energy drinks on cognitive function was indirectly measured in a study 14 performed in England in which researchers asked subjects to consume energy drinks with glucose or caffeine. These were found to increase the size of the motor-evoked potential MEP , which was used as a measure of increased cognitive function.

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Those drinks without caffeine or glucose did not increase MEP. This study, however, failed to determine whether the increase in MEP was due to glucose or caffeine. This would have been important since most energy drinks contain both caffeine and glucose. Energy drinks and mood. A double-blind, placebo-controlled study of 10 graduate students investigating an energy drink containing the three main ingredients found that in most energy drinks, caffeine, taurine, and glucuronate demonstrated positive effects on cognitive performance and mood.

The findings above were confirmed in a study 16 performed on healthy volunteers. The researchers investigated the effects of carbohydrates, carbonation, and caffeine in energy drinks with hopes of finding the benefits to their consumption. A double-blind, mixed-measures study of 81 subjects by Sunram-Lea et al 17 found similar results. The authors hypothesized that energy drinks can elevate mood states in acute stress situations, such as fire-fighting training.

They tested this hypothesis by administering a 50g glucose plus 40mg caffeine drink, a Those who consumed the 50g glucose plus 40mg caffeine beverage endorsed reduced anxiety and elevated mood following the stressor of fire-fighting training. The effect of caffeine on the mood of 35 healthy volunteers who were given mg of caffeine-containing supplement capsules was examined in another study. When this is compared to the 80mg of caffeine found in a can of Red Bull, one can understand why most users of energy drinks consume multiple drinks. For Red Bull, three cans contain mg, which is just 40mg above the mg found to enhance mood in the Childs study.

Energy drinks and sleep. Reyner and Horne 19 studied the effects of energy drinks on sleepiness.

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Their study sought to show that consuming these beverages reduced driving mistakes, such as lane swerving, and self-reported sleepiness when driving for extended periods of time. The double-blind study concluded that those who consumed a drink containing the ingredients also found in energy drinks caffeine, taurine, sucrose, and glucose , as compared to those who were given a nonactive placebo drink, reported less sleepiness and increased alertness while driving. In a study of college students, 67 percent of the respondents consumed energy drinks to prevent falling asleep, 65 percent to increase energy, and 54 percent consumed the beverage to mix it with alcohol.

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With such a difference in use within the same age group, there is a need for more studies to determine situations or settings in which greater consumption of energy drinks occur. Energy drinks can also have a negative effect on sleep, which may be modulated by caffeine. A study of high school students found that 95 percent of participants reported recent caffeine use. Mixed users of caffeine and soda reported early morning awakening and daytime sleepiness compared to the low caffeine group.

A separate study performed by Calamaro et al 22 found that there was a percent higher consumption of energy drinks among those students who reported daytime sleepiness. The consumption of these beverages led to a reduction in alertness and an increase in daytime sleepiness the following day. The study suggested that the daytime sleepiness was due to high energy drink consumption the night before, but failed to address the impact of insufficient sleep the preceding evening.

There is need for more detailed studies quantifying the actual number of hours slept, the amount and intensity of physical activities performed at night, and their association with energy drink consumption and daytime sleepiness. In a study conducted by Anderson et al, 23 the authors showed that energy drinks with low caffeine content 30mg did not counteract sleepiness and led to lower reaction time.

They also found that although high levels of glucose may have a short-term alertness-enhancing effect, in the long term they increased sleepiness in those subjects who were sleep deprived. Jay et al 24 investigated the effects of energy drinks on sleep hygiene following a period of wakefulness. The authors found that use of energy drinks to maintain alertness prior to an eight-hour period of recovery sleep negatively impacted total sleep time and sleep efficiency, but did not have a measurable effect on subsequent performance.

Those who consumed energy drinks prior to sleep had The results on the influence of energy drinks on sleep are conflicting and further study remains to be done. Energy drinks and impact on decision making. Individuals drink these beverages at various times of the day, whether it is in the morning, middle of the day, or at night. Energy drinks may be consumed alone, during a meal, or mixed with alcohol. The frequency of consumption of energy drinks and the reason for consuming alcohol may be related.

The frequency of consumption of energy drinks was studied in a descriptive and cross-sectional study. In a cross-sectional study of adolescents and young adults from universities in New York, 26 psychological effects, in terms of risk- taking behavior, were assessed via self-report. Frequency of energy drink consumption was positively associated with problem behaviors, particularly among Caucasian students.

3 Homemade Energy Drink Recipes

Across both races studied African American and Caucasian , the increased problem behaviors exhibited were in the domains of sexually risky behaviors, marijuana use, fighting, and failure to use seat belts. Among Caucasian students, there was an additional association between frequency of energy drink consumption and prescription drug abuse, alcohol abuse, and cigarette smoking. Combine them with lime juice and mint for a fresh twist. Ana is a healthy recipe writer, food photographer and soon-to-be certified nutritionist.

She shares her vegetarian recipes, healthy lifestyle tips and food photos on The Awesome Green. I have got to get myself some fresh mint to make the last one. I love the way you take such amazing photos of what you make! These look great http: Your email address will not be published.

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This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. Skip to primary navigation Skip to content Skip to primary sidebar Skip to footer When seasons change, and especially in spring and autumn, our bodies sense the difference of energies and vibrations, and reactions like weakness, headaches and low-energy levels become the highlights of every day. Total Facebook Tweet Pin Email.

Stir until chilled and enjoy. It helps energize you without making you jittery. When you are stressed, both the energy boost from the caffeine and the relaxing effect of the theanine can be helpful. Pomegranate juice is full of nutrients, flavonoids, and antioxidants and is low in sugar.

This healthy juice can help give you a boost from nutrition alone. The chia seeds were traditionally used as a support for long journeys. The gel-like substance they form when put in liquid absorbs slowly into the body, for a slow release of nutrients and energy. Chia seeds are high in vitamins and minerals, making them a favorite with many nutritionists. Milk gives you good source of both protein and fat for sustained energy.