Energy drinks: to drink or not to drink?
"Living water" of the XXI century
"Russian advertising"
Prepared by Miroslava Naumova
Energy drinks are a fairly recent invention of mankind, although their ingredients have long been used to stimulate the nervous system. Advertising promises us just miracles: a charge of cheerfulness in the early morning, strength and energy in the middle of the day and a portion of caffeine from a jar right at the disco. The creators also claim that there are vitamins, plant extracts, amino acids. Downright "living water"... What of all this is true and what is not – we decided to figure it out.
Cheerfulness for rent
Natural psychostimulants have been known to people all over the world since ancient times. The most common of these was caffeine. Its source in India and the countries of the Middle East was coffee; in China, India and Southeast Asia - tea; in America – the yerba mate plant and cola nuts, etc. In addition, history knows examples of the use of stronger stimulants, such as coca bush in South America, ephedra and kata in Asia. The inhabitants of Mongolia and Siberia used ginseng, eleutherococcus, aralia and other stimulating plants.
In 1982, Austrian Dietrich Mateschitz, while in Hong Kong, tried a local tonic drink and brought this idea to Western countries. In 1984, he founded the first enterprise for the industrial production of an energy drink – the popular "Red Bull" to this day. The product proved so successful that dozens of drinks with similar properties soon appeared on the market.
The giants of the "drinking" industry "Coca-Cola" and "Pepsi-Cola" also did not stand aside, releasing "Burn" and "Adrenaline Rush" respectively.Today, energy drinks are sold at any kiosk, in bars, clubs, they can often be seen in gyms and on sports grounds. Advertising positions them as a means of combating fatigue, helping an active lifestyle, mental activity, club dancing and sports.
In Norway, Denmark and France, energy drinks are considered biologically active additives and are allowed to be sold only in pharmacies. Recently, the noise around "power engineers" has intensified in connection with court proceedings over several deaths allegedly related to their use. In Sweden, three people died at a disco after drinking a mixture of an energy drink with strong alcohol, and 18-year-old Irish basketball player Ross Cooney died right on the court after three cans of the drink.
Let's try to figure out what these "batteries in tin cans" really are.
The formula of "living water"Despite the fact that there are dozens of energy drinks on the world market, their main ingredients are the same:
Sucrose is ordinary sugar. A compound of two simple sugars – glucose and fructose. A high-calorie component of many food products, it is used in its pure form to sweeten beverages, confectionery, etc.
Glucose is the most common sugar in human metabolic reactions, the main nutrient delivered by blood to organs and tissues (a well–known blood sugar test is nothing more than a determination of glucose concentration).
Caffeine is a common psychostimulant, found in tea, coffee, mate, guarana, cola nuts and some other plants. Reduces the feeling of fatigue and drowsiness, increases mental performance, accelerates the pulse, has a mild diuretic effect. The period of stimulation is replaced by fatigue, requiring adequate rest. The effect of an average dose of caffeine lasts about 3 hours, but it is excreted much slower, so an overdose is possible with repeated use. It is manifested by excitement, insomnia, nervousness, irritability, cramps, abdominal pain, accelerated and irregular heart rhythm, and at very high doses – psychosis, muscle damage, arrhythmia and death (the lethal dose for a person is 10-15 g of caffeine, or 100-150 cups of coffee).
Theobromine is a substance similar in structure and action to caffeine, but having about 10 times less psychostimulating effect. It is found in cocoa and cocoa products, for example, in chocolate.
Taurine is necessary for the normal functioning of the nervous, immune and some other systems, participates in the regulation of fat and calcium metabolism. Taurine can reduce muscle fatigue during prolonged exercise.
Glucuronolactone is one of the natural metabolites of glucose in the human body. It is also found in cereals, red wine, and some vegetable resins. An important component of connective tissue. It has no "energy" properties, somewhat improves the excretion of toxic metabolic products from the body. In "energy drinks" it is contained in an amount exceeding the natural daily production by 250-500 times.
L-carnitine is a substance that is synthesized in the body from the amino acids lysine or methionine. It is found in meat and dairy products, nuts, some fruits and vegetables. It is necessary for the normal absorption and breakdown of fats.
D-ribose is a sugar that is part of RNA, ATP and some other important biological molecules. It is produced in the human body. Its ability to stimulate energy metabolism is clearly exaggerated.
Guarana is a tropical plant common in Brazil, used as a natural psychostimulant. It contains many organic substances, the main of which is caffeine, which causes a stimulating effect.
Ginseng is a natural stimulant of versatile action. In normal doses, it reduces the feeling of fatigue, increases mental and physical activity. Excessive use is fraught with anxiety, insomnia and a rise in blood pressure.
To drink or not to drink? That's the question!When drinking an energy drink, a person, in addition to guaranteed stimulation with caffeine (the same as when drinking, for example, coffee), swallows a big question mark, since there is simply no data on the effects of combinations of such substances in such doses.
One jar of a trendy drink contains about the same dose of caffeine as a cup of coffee, and its tonic effect lasts 3-4 hours. At the same time, this caffeine stimulates the nervous system, increases the heart rate and increases blood pressure (acts as a dope, which is harmful – especially after serious physical exertion); it is contraindicated for people with diseases of the cardiovascular system.
If, despite this, you still decide to "recharge", here are some tips to reduce the risk associated with the use of "energy drinks":
1. It is not recommended to drink more than one can (250 ml) of energy drink per day, a large can (500 ml) is already considered an excessive dose.
2. After the expiration of the "battery", provide the body with sufficient rest.
3. Do not drink "energy drinks" after physical exertion and sports training – both increase blood pressure and activate cardiac activity. So do not spur an already tired body – its resources are not unlimited.
4. It is better to drink drinks with guarana than with caffeine, because they, unlike instant coffee, do not irritate the gastric mucosa.
5. Do not drink energy drinks with coffee and tea – by doing this, you overload the nervous system, heart and liver. In no case can you use both energy cocktail and alcohol at the same time: the first excites the nervous system, the second relaxes.
6. Remember that "energetics" are contraindicated for pregnant women, children, adolescents, the elderly, people suffering from hypertension, cardiovascular diseases, glaucoma, sleep disorders, increased excitability and sensitivity to caffeine, liver diseases, hyperthyroidism, urolithiasis and stomach ulcers.
7. According to doctors, energy drinks are nothing more than vitamin substitutes for coffee, but only more dangerous to health. Fruit juices and glucose contained in many other foods have a similar effect.
Portal "Eternal youth" www.vechnayamolodost.ru
09.04.2008