Since the introduction of Red Bull in 1987, energy drinks have exploded in popularity across the globe and especially in the United States where it has increased in value from a 100 million dollar industry in 2002 to a 4 billion dollar industry in 2009. A recent scientific review has shown that energy drinks can contain up to 505 mg of caffeine per bottle, compared to the average 75-100 mg of caffeine in a cup of brewed coffee. Ingestion of such high levels of caffeine can lead to caffeine dependence, withdrawal, and intoxication. Caffeine intoxication elicits symptoms such as anxiety, tremors, insomnia, tachycardia, and general nervousness similar to those caused by anxiety disorders.
Energy drinks have also made a splash in the world of alcohol consumption, where alcoholic and caffeinated mixed drinks as well as pre-mixed caffeinated energy drinks such as Four Loko have both become very popular. When polled (2011), 24% of college students reported mixing alcohol and energy drinks, 49% of which consumed at least three energy drinks per episode. While the effects of this drug combination may be enjoyable, many consumers don’t realize the physiological effects of mixing polarized drugs.
Alcohol is a depressant affecting the central nervous system to impair motor skills, reaction time, vision, judgement, and general homeostasis. When consumed with the stimulant caffeine some of these side effects (particularly impairment of motor control) are perceived to be lessened, while in reality, objective tests show they are not. This misperception is correlated with increased instances of alcohol related injury, drunk driving, and assault. There have also been reports of dangerously elevated heart rate, in which the impaired central nervous system cannot control heart rate in the presence of the stimulating caffeine.
Furthermore, these mixed drinks are usually sweet and flavorful, properties that mask the taste of alcohol. This, in addition to the fact that caffeine masks the perception of alcoholic impairment, can cause unintentional over consumption and misjudgment of personal intoxication, which can lead to poor situational decision making. Understanding that caffeine lessens perception of intoxication is the best approach to promoting self-control over the abuse of these drugs.
To read about the FDA’s stance on alcoholic energy drinks, click here.
