1.30.2009

Not so bad after all?

Reading up on Redbull.com I came across a list of the top ingredients in Redbull drinks, making the drinks seem not ALL that bad for your health (maybe okay in small amounts?) as compared to the article I read before. Taurine is one of the main ingredients that can act like an antioxident to the body and promotes detoxification of the body. What's so bad about that? Taurine can even be found as an added ingredient to most baby food! Another no-so-bad ingredient is vitamin B- which is essential in the breakdown of carbohydrates and fat. Obviously caffeine is a prime ingredient, which can improve alertness in the body, and glucuronolactone which also boosts the bodies natural detoxification process. There are other ingredients that they don't give much background for. Maybe those are the ingredients we should worry about? Maybe I'll read up on those and post about them later? Here's the link if you're interested:
http://www.redbullusa.com/#page=ProductPage.Ingredients

1.29.2009

Warning Labels?


So, I just finished reading this article on thebostonchannel.com about energy drinks and warning labels? I guess I never really thought about that before, but I guess it makes sense. I used to drink energy drinks on a daily basis until my recent health kick with the new year and all. I never used to really think they were THAT bad for you, but this article suggests warning labels should be put on energy drinks for the amounts of caffeine that are in them. According to the article, ""The caffeine content of energy drinks varies over a 10-fold range, with some containing the equivalent of 14 cans of Coca-Cola". WOW. "Caffeine intoxication causes nervousness, anxiety, restlessness, insomnia, gastrointestinal upset, tremors, rapid heartbeats and restlessness, according to a news release. In rare cases, it can cause death." That's a little scary. I never really thought about them in a dangerous way, they seemed just as harmless to me as a can of soda. What do you guys think, are warning labels on energy drinks necessary? Or should we expect people to be knowledgable enough not to drink them in ridiculous quantities?