Nutritionists and health care
professionals strive for preserving the health of the public by following the
guidelines of healthy dietary patterns and being engaged into a regular
physical activity routine. Dietary guidelines stress the notion that all
required nutrients for the body ought to be provided by a variety of nutritious
food items, while refraining from the intake of high energy/ non-nutritious
items.
The term “empty calories” was coined for the
energy that is derived from the latter group, such as sugary soda drinks and
high sugar-containing juices. Because of the wide publicity for what are called
“energy drinks”, it has become necessary to have a rational view of several
aspects of such drinks. Therefore, this article explores this topic from
nutritional and public health perspectives Energy drinks are beverages
that contain varying amounts of caffeine (77-110 mg/240 ml) and a variety
of other additives.
While the actual caffeine content
for many energy drinks is not identified on product packaging or via other
sources, the total amount of caffeine contained in some of these drinks can
exceed 500 mg and can cause caffeine toxicity. A lethal dose of caffeine is
considered to between 200- 400 mg/kg body weight. Energy drinks contain other
ingredients, such as: Vitamins, taurine, theanine, carnitine, herbal
supplements, creatine, sugars (3-31 g/240 ml), and guarana-a plant product that
contains high amounts of caffeine.
