This Book Excerpt of the Week is from PART ONE: ABCs of Caffeine Safety – B=Biological Sensitivity. Did you know anxiety disorders affect 40 million adults every year, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America? Did you know caffeine intakes of 700 milligrams can induce panic attacks in people who have never had them before? A panic attack involves sudden, powerful and often debilitating feelings of threat and fear.
Anxiety is one of the two most common conditions that could shuttle a former coffee lover into the Sensitive-to-Caffeine Camp. THIS IS WHY IT DRIVES ME CRAZY when people talk about energy drinks WITHOUT DISCLOSING THE AMOUNT OF CAFFEINE. Energy drinks caffeinated beverages and supplements are definitely not for everyone but energy drinks ARE NOT ALL CREATED EQUAL.
Get your copy of my book “Are You a Monster or a Rock Star-A Guide to Energy Drinks: How They Work, Why They Work, How to Use Them Safely” http://amzn.to/2bjHRbk
You’ve probably seen this story on CNN and other outlets. There are some additional details I want to add based on the 10 years I put into researching energy drinks and their ingredients. In the CNN article, I do understand why it’s mentioned this man had excessive folate and vitamin B12 levels, and yet the blame for the liver problems went not to B12 nor folate, but exclusively to niacin. Excessive folate masks B12 deficiency; excessive B12 doesn’t have documented symptoms, and excessive niacin HAS in fact caused liver damage. Liver damage may occur at 1.5 GRAMS (1500 mg). However, the man in this story reportedly only consumed 5 cans with 40 mg niacin each, or 200 mg niacin total. That doesn’t seem like enough to hit toxicity levels. Another thing to consider is how Niacin Flush occurs at 30 mg; if someone was consuming an excess of niacin, usually they’d feel it.
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I’m always aggravated when “energy drinks” are treated all the same. Have you see the “energy drinks in disguise” I’ve been talking about here on this blog? Do you even realize how different the New Age of energy drinks more closely resembles “functional beverages” than the energy drink stereotype. But I get it — some stereotypes are just too persistent.
In that case, what aggravates me most of all in this particular story is how the caffeine content is curiously missing from the details collected or any of the blame assigned/implicated in this piece. It’s aggrivating to me when a news story casually implies energy drinks have caused a medical condition, and yet the details of that energy drink are missing. What OTHER ingredients were in there? Any EGCG? How much caffeine? How much sugar?
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This is important because there are some really critical details missing from the news stories, and yet they’re not wrong. It’s TRUE that TOO MUCH Niacin can hurt your liver. But HOW MUCH is TOO MUCH? (1.5 GRAMS) That’s what is missing from these news stories. That’s what I want to share with all of you. There’s no need for panic, but there IS a need to be more informed.
Reference used for the vitamin information – Are You A Monster Or a Rock Star: A Guide to Energy Drinks http://amzn.to/2bjHRbk
Related content: Niacin Sample Chapter from my book “Are You a Monster or a Rock Star: A Guide to Energy Drinks — How They Work, Why They Work, How to Use Them Safely”
This is one of those times that reminds me of a South Park episode: when I use the words “clean energy” to describe a healthy alternative to the stereotypical energy drink, my computer starts showing me ads for solar power. As suggested in the South Park episode “Sponsored Content”, ads have evolved. But then so have energy drinks.
The Energy Drink of the Month for April 2016 is Clean Energy On-Demand (CEO).
Clean Energy On-Demand – YET ANOTHER Energy Drink in Disguise!
Currently, Watermelon Coconut is the only flavor available, but this product is brand new as of this post. For an in-depth Q & A with Founder Jason Petrou, including their Steven Covey-eque Mission Statement and a peak into just how difficult it can be to bring a healthy beverage to market, CLICK HERE.
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THE CAFFEINE
This product contains 70 milligrams of caffeine per bottle, and it says so right on the label. The caffeine comes from organic green coffee beans — Arabica coffee beans that are spared from the roasting that turns them brown and delivers the signature coffee flavor profile. Of course, caffeine is caffeine is caffeine, but that’s specifically the molecule itself. When caffeine is extracted from different sources, different compounds may come along with it – sometimes called conjoiners. This is why a food scientist may find different microscopic compounds mixed in with their caffeine extract if that extract comes from a coffee bean or a coffeeberry.
Thankfully CEO treats one whole bottle as one whole serving (how realistic), but with a screw-cap lid you can moderate your dosage and save some for the next day. This 70 mg dose of caffeine is slightly less than the 80 mg in an 8 oz Red Bull and less than HALF that of a SHORT cup of brewed coffee from Starbucks. (PS – Please note that using “a standard cup of coffee” as an indicator of caffeine content is one of the worst measurement devices on the planet. Those who respect your business will tell you EXACTLY how much caffeine is in their product without hiding behind this euphemistic, deceptive measurement. )
The 5 Levels of Fatigue provides guidelines for matching caffeine content and other factors (like carbonation) with how tired you ACTUALLY are.
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THE INGREDIENTS
Other ingredients in this product include watermelon juice concentrate, coconut water concentrate, and lime juice. These ingredients and the corresponding sodium and potassium electrolytes are what make this drink so refreshing and hydrating. [For more on hydration, see this article from Food Insight]
There are no artificial colors or flavors in this product, and no added sugar. The watermelon juice provides the sweetness, and vegetable juice is added to enhance the drink’s slight red hue.
The most chemical-sounding ingredients in this product are sodium citrate and malic acid, but even those are very clean and non-scary to the worst case of chemophobia. Sodium citrate is a form of the citric acid that gives lemons their characteristic sourness, and malic acid is naturally found in watermelons and stone fruits. See this amazing infographic from Compound Interest for more details on those natural acids:
Not all energy drinks are created equal, and whether an energy drink is right for you depends not just on your level of fatigue, but on your diet goals and lifestyle choices. For example, some people are more concerned about artificial ingredients than their sugar intake, while others would rather have stevia or artificial sweeteners and a zero-sugar, zero-calorie beverage.
CEO v Similar Energy Drinks
CEO has no artificial colors or flavors, and each bottle contains just 50 Calories and 11 grams of sugar. Even if you drank the whole bottle, the sugar and Calorie impact is still minimal, which makes this energy drink a great healthy swap for some of the strictest diets. Compared to Starbucks Refreshers, which is also made with green coffee beans, this CEO beverage has more juice and caffeine (50%, 70 mg versus 25%, 50 mg). CEO also has less sugar than both Starbucks Refreshers (11 grams versus 13 grams).
Compared to BAI Antioxidant Infusion, which we reviewed February 2016, CEO has more sugar (11 grams versus 2* grams). However, that 2-asterisk-grams doesn’t include the 16 grams of sugar alcohol erythritol per bottle of BAI. CEO doesn’t use any sugar alcohols (or any other sweeteners for that matter). Furthermore, CEO is 50% juice per bottle and is aimed at hydration, while BAI is only 8% juice per bottle and is aimed at providing a dose of coffeeberry antioxidants.
CEO v Similar Hydration Drinks
I, personally, cannot stand the taste of coconut water. If you enjoy coconut water and are interested in other hydration drinks, CEO is worth a try. It bothers me immensely when people group energy drinks into one giant basket. Thus I will not make that mistake here with coconut waters. Instead, I will advise you to compare labels for Calories and sugar content when finding the beverage that works best for your diet goals and lifestyle. First and foremost you should find a sports drink that doesn’t cause you any tummy discomfort or sabotage your whole day, diet-wise. The next step in finding the perfect hydration beverage is to find one you will actually drink! For more on hydration, see this handy guide I prepared for The Scientific Parent.
Fact Panel CEO
Apr 2016 Energy Drink of the Month
Inspirational blurb
BOTTOM LINE
Behold – yet another “energy drink in disguise” that breaks the energy drink stereotype. I wouldn’t recommend this product unless I was confident in its safety – and I do highly recommend this product. I got the chance to ask CEO about their food safety program and quality testing, and I am satisfied that this is a safe, healthy alternative to the stereotypical energy drink. At 70 mg per bottle, this would make a great swap to those used to the caffeine of a single 8 ounce Red Bull.
One of my favorite things to do as an energy drink expert is highlight products that prove how much the energy drink market has evolved. Oh sure, terms like “nutraceuticals” and “functional food” were around in 2003 when I started my college studies in biochemistry, but the stereotypical energy drink was the only energy drink. My, how far we’ve come. Read more →
In many ways Riboflavin and Niacin are similar, but if they were related niacin would be riboflavin’s cooler older sibling. Niacin exists as nicotinic acid (or niacin) and nicotinamide (or niacinamide). Note, nicotine is not a vitamin and while both nicotine and nicotinamide have chemical structures with nitrogen-containing rings, the difference between them is like the difference between laughter and slaughter.
What is it? Nicain is readily absorbed from the stomach and intestine which means it gets absorbed faster and more efficiently than other vitamins that are only absorbed in the small intestine. Almost all niacin consumed is absorbed. Unlike riboflavin, niacin doesn’t need to be consumed with food because niacin absorption doesn’t rely on stomach acids to make it absorbable. Unlike riboflavin, which needs to be escorted into the system, niacin is effortlessly absorbed via passive diffusion.
Where does it come from? Niacin is so important to our bodies that, should we fail to consume enough of it, we can synthesize it from the amino acid tryptophan. Notably, this reaction requires the help of riboflavin coenzymes. Rich sources of niacin include mushrooms, wheat bran, tuna, chicken, turkey, asparagus, peanuts and animal proteins (which are rich in tryptophan). Approximately 90 grams of protein can result in 15 milligrams of niacin. The RDA is 16 milligrams per day for male adults; 14 milligrams per day for female adults. The Daily Value is 20 milligrams.
Niacin is so prized and popular that the niacin molecules in corn are under lockdown. Corn’s content of niacin is similar to that of rice, and is considerably higher than that of most other vegetables. However, a protein in corn binds the vitamin and severely limits its absorption. Soaking corn in alkaline solution such as lime water releases the bound niacin, thus making it available for absorption.
What does it do? Niacin is everywhere in the body. Niacin is like that person everyone wants at their party. Riboflavin and niacin participate in redox reactions, but niacin is undeniably more ubiquitous. Niacin participates in at least 200 reactions, most of those used to produce ATP (the chemical form of energy). Like riboflavin, niacin’s role is to collect hydrogens to “feed the dragon”, the electron transport chain, which ultimately results in a release of energy (see riboflavin chapter for dragon metaphor explanation). Despite the similar role, niacin far outshines riboflavin by the sheer number of reactions it participates in. Really, there’s no contest. Another reason adults should appreciate niacin is its role in alcohol metabolism. Niacin helps the enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase convert alcohol to acetaldehyde.
A deficiency in niacin affects the whole body because niacin is used in so many metabolic reactions. Niacin deficiency leads to Pellagra, which comes from the Italian words pelle (skin) and agra (rough). When this deficiency was first discovered in 1735 by Spanish physician Casal, it was named mal de la rosa or Red Sickness. Signs of the deficiency included a red rash in the skin exposed to the sun, especially the neckline (hence the phrase “Casal’s necklace”). Pellagra symptoms are more commonly known as the three D’s: dementia, diarrhea and dermatitis. It can also be known for its dietary deficiency disaster.
Niacin is the only vitamin whose deficiency disease reached epidemic proportions in the United States. In 1915, more than 10,000 Americans died of Pellagra and an estimated 200,000 more suffered from the disease. Some people had dementia so severe they were put into mental institutions. How did this disease get so bad? It was the increase in corn consumption.
Niacin deficiencies became wide-spread through Europe during the 1700s as corn became more of a dietary staple. Spanish settlers in Latin American learned the ways of the native populations that soaked the corn in lime water before cooking, thereby releasing niacin from its protein lockdown. During the early 1900s, consumption of corn rose dramatically in the United States but the value of this soaking treatment was misunderstood. The cause of Pellegra was also misunderstood, and it affected so many lives for so many years because it was thought to be contagious.
Cue the hero: Dr. Joseph Goldberger. Dr. Goldberger, a public health specialist, proved that Pellagra was not contagious by exposing himself and his colleagues to biological samples from patients with Pellagra. One can only imagine the confidence and bravery it took to carry this out. Suffice to say, Dr. Goldberger helped resolve the dietary deficiency disaster by proving the cause and providing the cure. With the introduction of niacin-enriched grains in 1941 and post-wartime increases in protein consumption, Pellagra eventually disappeared in the United States.
One final reason to admire niacin is its role in combating atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries). When under supervision of a qualified physician and when combined with appropriate diet and exercise, doses 75-100 times the RDA (“mega-doses”) of nicotinic acid may help lower “bad cholesterol” LDL levels and increase “good cholesterol” HDL levels. Prescriptions are normally provided in 1.5 – 2.0 grams nicotinic acid per day. One cannot and should not self-medicate and attempt to mega-dose without the help of a physician because this amount of niacin can cause serious side effects. Mega-doses of niacin are provided with a time- release coating that should minimize flushing of the skin, itching, gastrointestinal distress with nausea and vomiting, and liver damage.
How does this relate to energy? The sheer number of energy-related chemical reactions niacin participates in make it an excellent candidate to add to an energy drink. However, a note of caution: the upper level of niacin intake is based on an effect called the Niacin Flush. At a daily dose as low as 35 milligrams, some people experience a red flush of the skin and itching. At amounts around 1.5 grams, other, more serious side effects like GI distress and liver damage have been reported. This flushing does not occur with niacin consumed from food, only supplemental niacin.
PLEASE ALWAYS READ THE LABEL FOR AMOUNT OF NIACIN, SERVING SIZE AND SERVINGS PER CONTAINER. Even if you’re playing poker, a Niacin Flush is something to be avoided.
Read more about other energy drink ingredients in:
