Intoxication By Energy Drinks

The health risks of caffeine by: Nicole Billman March 12, 2014

Introduction
It is no secret that we all scrounge for change to purchase our favorite energy drink out of the vending machine on the way to the library for an all night study session or plan 5 extra minutes in the morning to stop and grab a coffee. What isnt a secret is the risk college students put themselves at by consuming more than the recommended amount of caffeine in a day but a lot of people are not aware of the potential health risks energy drinks could pose. Caffeine: a stimulant drug that affects the central nervous system both helpful and harmful

What's the big deal you ask?

It is the worlds most widely consumed psychoactive drug but it has no regulations for required labels stating the risks and amount of caffeine contained in products. Caffeine poses the risk of becoming addictive and withdrawal symptoms can be hard to overcome such as: Headaches Fatigue Anxiety Irritability Depressed moods Difficulty concentrating Insomnia Caffeine disrupts the neurotransmission of different chemicals that help control our excitement and hypertonia levels. For someone with a serious heart condition, the missing warning about caffeine content or limit of caffeine a company can put into a product could cause some serious side effects. Even with someone who has stress problems or high blood pressure, caffeine poses risks that society needs to take into consideration when consuming an energy drink or a cup of coffee.

Source #1
Official Website for Red Bull
When visiting the official website for Red Bull Energy Drinks, there are options that you can choose to see HOW IT WORKS, WHEN TO DRINK, and WHATS INSIDE. Each tab provides information that boosts Red Bulls reputation as being good to drink.

HOW IT WORKS provides quotes from a couple of well known athletes who say Red Bull keeps
them focused before a big race and helps them stay energetic and sharp during important games.

WHEN TO DRINK gives suggestions of when drinking a Red Bull can be useful to you such as:
On the road During lectures and study sessions At work While doing sports Playing video games Going out day and night

WHATS INSIDE tells you the ingredients Red Bull uses to create the refreshing beverage
which include: Caffeine Taurine B-Group Vitamins Sucrose and Glucose sugars Alpine Spring Water

Validity of
The official website for Red Bull is credible in that it is the official website for the product. It is set up so that it is easy to find out what you want to know about the product and the company. This website is designed to look attractive to their current consumers and draw in future buyers as well as make their products seem like the best option for a quick start to the day or an extra boost of energy. It provides valid information on explains what each ingredient is when consumed. Not only does Red the original flavor of Red Bull, well. what is in the product and and what it does for our body Bull give the ingredients for but the other editions as

The only problem with this website is that it does not explain what happens to your body when all of the ingredients react with each other. With this lack of information I was able to make an argument based on how there are no regulations on energy drinks for their content and amount of caffeine they use.

Source #2
BMJ Case Reports: Caffeinated energy drink intoxication
Authors of Caffeinated Energy Drink Intoxication, Daniel Trabulo, Susana Marques, and Ermelinda Pedroso, all work at the Hospital de S Bernardo in Setubal, Portugal. According to their article, caffeine should be regulated because most consumers of energy drinks are not aware of the dangers they pose and that puts their health at risk. Currently the FDA does not require energy drink companies such as Red Bull, Monster, and Nos to display any warnings about the dangers of caffeine consumption as well as the amount of caffeine a can contains. There have been a number of reported cases where energy drink consumption has led to caffeine intoxication that triggers symptoms causing hospital admissions and death.
o A 28 year old experienced sudden onset of tonic-clonic seizures that affect the entire body due to high energy drink consumption within a short period of time. The patient had developed these types of seizures while having trouble with drugs.

Most consumers unwittingly consume more caffeine than they should for their body type and it is important to recognize the characteristics of caffeine intoxication.

 Includes helpful tools to make using the website easier such as a mobile app and a quick start guide to how to utilize PubMed. Each article includes learning tips summarizing the most important parts about the article.
o Useful for when you need to quickly skim the article

This source gives me multiple articles on hazards of caffeine content in energy drinks and case reports of known hospital admissions due to caffeine intoxication.

Why is this source credible?

Comprised of 23 million biomedical literature, journals, and online books. Each article is from MEDLINE Industries, supplier of medical information to hospitals and the public.

What's next?!
Incorporate more information about caffeine in coffee.
o Explain how it is not as dangerous as energy drinks because there are no extra additives like taurine and natural sugars.

Research more case studies on hospital admissions and incidents dealing with caffeine consumption.

Works cited
"Caffeine Facts: Addiction, Insomnia, Pregnancy Effects, and More." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2014. Pennington, N., M. Johnson, E. Delaney, and M. B. Blankenship. "Energy Drinks: A New Health Hazard for Adolescents." The Journal of School Nursing 26.5 (2010): 352-359. Print.

"Red Bull Gives You Wings - RedBull.com." Red Bull. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2014.
Trabulo, D., S. Marques, and E. Pedroso. "Caffeinated energy drink intoxication." BMJ Case Reports 2011.jan29 1 (2011): bcr0920103322-bcr0920103322. Print.