MANILA, Philippines – If you are reading this you may be one of two things: a student keeping up with the news in-between classes or a professional worker gearing up for a hard day at the cubicle farm. Whichever you are, keeping up the personal energy level and stamina to deal with the day’s events is of paramount importance. You need your mind to be alert and ready to go at a moment’s notice if you want a chance to accomplish much of the tasks laid out in front of you.
A doctor or certified nutritionist would know that if you already have a balanced diet, eating three square meals a day of the recommended foods and nutrients to keep one going, that you’re already a few steps ahead. Getting a boost when you need it matters only when you think your body can handle it. It won’t hurt to try, though, especially when you need to keep on working to accomplish your goals for the day.
Energy Drinks have been in the local market since the late 1990s and have exploded in popularity and consumption at the turn of the century. But even before that influx, the drinks that “keeps you going” was marketed towards the working class as a quick fix for tiring labor. Now in the Internet age, energy drinks have become more important in the realm of increased productivity, workplace performance and mental alertness.
Common Misconceptions
People often think just because the word “Energy” is slapped on the side of the bottle it means consuming said drink will give one strength and stamina—like Popeye after eating a can of spinach. This is, as the fictional character represents, only half true.
Energy drinks contain stimulants that do more for mental alertness and keeping you awake than any perceived gain in physical strength. They are formulated to give you caffeine, a substance all too familiar with coffee drinkers, and a host of other vitamins and nutrients to help in your stamina. And here’s the rub: are energy drinks meant for physical activities?
Not entirely. When you need to be alert and aware, yes, energy drinks do help. But these drinks are not meant to replace lost fluids, a common side effect when doing hard labor. You actually lose more fluids in the process since energy drinks tend to act as a diuretic. The caffeine stimulates the kidneys into producing more urine which is a loss of more fluids during exercise.
There’s also a reason why energy drinks are distributed in small bottles and cans. They are meant to deliver the most amounts of stimulant in a small amount of fluid. One bottle or can alone is equivalent to having one cup of coffee. So, if you already had your daily fix in the morning, keep in mind that overdoing the normal doctor-recommended amounts of caffeine in a day can and will be dangerous.
With this in mind, some enterprising individuals are leading people to believe that mixing energy drinks with alcoholic beverages gets rid of the negative side effects of excessive alcohol intake. Again, not entirely true—independent studies have suggested that an alcohol-energy drink mix significantly reduced “subjective” alcohol related symptoms such as weakness, headaches, dry mouths and motor coordination and function impairment. But levels of alcohol in the blood and breath remain consistent.
In short, you’ll still get drunk and will probably consume more than you can handle since you aren’t feeling the effects immediately. Since caffeine can have a dehydrating effect, it is alleged that the body’s ability to metabolize alcohol is much slower.
Keep your Energy High
With proper consumption, energy drinks can help you through a hard day. It is well documented that people who are tired experience an increase in mental and cognitive performance and alertness after consuming an energy drink. Energy drinks may not help in strength, but it does lead to better muscle stamina. You’re not going to be Superman by any stretch of the imagination, but more like the Energizer Bunny which keeps going and going and going…
Having an energy drink really depends on you as a person. Do you want something to wake you up in the mornings and keep you going as the day stretches on? Or do you only need to finish some work while burning the midnight oil? Whichever the case, the rule of thumb is never consume more than what is necessary. Always keep in mind that moderation in everything is essential and a balanced nutrition already provides all the energy you need in a day.