Why Caffeine and Energy Drinks Don’t Really Work

Do caffeine and caffeine-derivatives really give you wings? Caffeine and energy drinks don’t really work to increase your energy or metabolism in the long run. David tackles common myths and assumptions about caffeine and caffeine derivates. Let’s explore what we mean by something working. Is it really?

Highlights of this episode:

• How energy levels change
• Energy and metabolism
• Caffeine and caffeine derivates
• Debunking energy claims
• What helps your energy levels

Episode Show Notes*:

*not a transcript

Warning: this episode contains diet culture concepts such as weight, fat, ob*sity, and calories. We use these words not in support. We use these words to argue against using weight as a health marker. That said, if you are not ready in your journey to be exposed again to these concepts, honor your mental health first and skip this episode. 

This episode on metabolism is Part 2 from Episode 141 – How do I fix my Metabolism?

[01:50] Why Caffeine and Energy Drinks Don’t Really Work

Caffeine and energy drinks don’t really work to increase your energy and metabolism long term. In our practice, clients come in exhausted, hoping to find answers through food. One person’s story, Ericka, shows how caffeine and energy drinks can backfire.

[02:34] Ericka’s Story about Caffeine

Ericka is a 28 year old speech therapist. She worked 12 hr shifts, 3-4 days/week. She loves Parkour, Jiu Jitsu, and yoga. Ericka lived on coffee and energy drinks (Celsius, Red Bull, AMP, or diet soda) and protein bars. On her days off, she slept till 11 am or 12 pm. Then worked out, partied, and typically skipped meals. Followed by binge eating chips and guacamole, snacks, and ordering fast food at night alone. If she worked the next day, she would go back to rigid food avoidance to punish herself for yesterday’s eating patterns. She had a high level of activity and not enough food or rest.

Can you guess what happened with Ericka? Let’s pause to review some of the claims about caffeine and caffeine derivates on energy and metabolism and then finish Ericka’s story.

[06:13] Coffee Does Not Boost Your Metabolism

Despite the common claim, like cited in this online health blog, coffee’s effects on metabolism are minimal when you really critically read more.  This meta-analysis study, “The Effects of Catechin Rich Teas and Caffeine on Energy Expenditure and Fat Oxidation: A Meta-Analysis,” was conducted to see if tea or caffeine had any effect on metabolism. There was no evidence that caffeine-only supplementation increased metabolism. So, caffeine does not really work to increase your metabolism. So, the researchers discard caffeine due to lack of evidence and focuses in on the combination of catechin & caffeine’s effect on metabolism through green and black tea. These teas contain two ingredients of interest on metabolism: catechin and caffeine.

Metabolism is not just one process. It had many different pathways of chemical reactions and organs involved. This study looked at metabolism as an increased thermogenesis. Thermogenesis is heat production, which adds to total energy expenditure and also fat oxidation, which is called fat metabolism, or in diet culture, this is called burning fat to shed those pounds.

However, only 6 small studies of less than 32 people were comparable to the research question and results were mixed. Those small studies had variation of intervention. Some were a mix of catechin and caffeine mixtures, while others had either catechin rich tea or caffeine supplements only. Results showed the increased energy expenditure was significant by 428 calories, but fat oxidation was minimal and non-significant. Overall, “this meta-analysis shows that a catechin-caffeine mixture and caffeine-only have a stimulating effect on energy expenditure.”

Let’s dig further into the results. In the discussion, the authors of the research point out that “Subjects with a higher BMI at baseline correspond to higher energy expenditure, although this is not the case for fat oxidation. Having a higher BMI and therefore higher energy expenditure is logical as heavier subjects have more fat-free mass, which is the main determinant of basal metabolic rate. WELL DUH – if you ever played around with any calorie calculators, you’ll notice that people with high BMI have a greater need for more calories (minus physical activity needs).

The authors of the study say, “given the limited precision of these estimates and the limited generalizability of the findings due to the small number of subjects, these results must be treated with caution.” For example, the catechin compositions could not be compared.

So the online blog article misrepresents the study’s information. The blog says results may vary, and how true is that! However, if you want to drink 3 cups for an insignificant 100 calorie burn, you also may get caffeine tolerance. This tolerance means that you drink more without the same energy boost. (Listen to Meredith story on Episode 108 – Have You Ever Hit that Midday Slump?) So, caffeine drinks don’t really work to increase your metabolism. And in the long run, do not help with your energy.

[13:41] Energy Drinks Don’t “Work”

Sure, energy drinks work in the short term and give you energy temporarily. Let’s explore what we mean by something working.

Energy drinks are somewhat new compared to coffee and tea and very popular. They are the second consumed supplement after multivitamins. On average, 1 beverage has 200 mg of caffeine and caffeine derivates. However, the amount is not required to be listed by the FDA. There’s quite a variety of them, some contain caffeine and others have a mix of caffeine and caffeine alternatives, or just the stimulant alternatives.

The unfortunate trend is that 25% of college students mix energy drinks with alcohol, combining a stimulant with a depressant. When data was collected on energy drinks, it was found that:

• “People who combine caffeinated drinks with alcohol may not be able to tell how intoxicated they are; they may feel less intoxicated than they would if they had not consumed caffeine, but their motor coordination and reaction time may be just as impaired.”
• “Excessive energy drink consumption may disrupt teens’ sleep patterns and may be associated with increased risk-taking behavior,” like unprotected sex and drunk diving.
• “Between 2007 and 2011, the number of energy drink-related visits to emergency departments doubled. In 2011, 1 in 10 of these visits resulted in further hospitalization.”

Recall Episode 126 with Dr. Levant and his book, “How Traditional Masculine Ideology is Killing Men. He found higher levels of risk-taking behaviors in men. Do we really need more substances that make men feel more violent and invincible?  Excessive alcohol can lead to chemical dependency, malnutrition, and even suppress appetite over time. The sleep disturbances can interfere with our metabolism as well. (Check out EP 114 for more info on sleep and metabolism.)

With energy drinks, the same symptoms are happening – dependency for energy, suppressing appetite, leading to malnutrition in the long run. “Energy drinks may enhance alertness and improve reaction time, but they may also reduce steadiness of the hands.” Those shakes are a body signal that you had too much! It’s like an internal emergency alert system trying to tell you something is not alright.

And because there’s no requirement to declare the amounts of these products on the label, this is impossible to monitor, track, or count. So, do energy drinks really work to increase your energy and metabolism in the long run? Doubtful.

[22:09] Caffeine Derivates Don’t Work

Energy drinks are filled with caffeine and other stimulants, but do they work? Stimulants like sugars, guarana, taurine, ginseng, B vitamins, glucuronolactone, yohimbe, carnitine, and bitter orange are thrown in with caffeine or are alternatives to caffeine from coffee. By the way, the FDA does not regulate supplements well, there are only loose rules.

Let’s start with Guarana:

• Guarana, sometimes called Brazilian cocoa, has up to 4x more caffeine than coffee beans.
• Guarana has an interesting history perhaps not as well known as coffee and tea in the USA.
• Guarana comes from the Brazilian Amazon and is a sacred origin plant of the Satere-Mawe native people. Now, it’s worth millions to the Brazilian economy.
• While the native tribe still processes the plant like their ancestors, this is not necessarily the guarana used for industrial use in energy drinks. The political and economic battle and balance of power between the indigenous and the Brazilian government continues.
• The irony is that Coca Cola started with the coca plant and they replaced it with caffeine, a lighter stimulant, and now were moving toward a stronger stimulate in Guarana. Brazil saw the economic impact of cocaine but they found a way to make it cool, hip, and legal.

[23:55] Carnitine

• Proteins contain amino acids and carnitine is an amino acid. It does play a role in energy production and burns fatty acids, which is why diet influencers pedal it for increasing your metabolism, but it does not work like they sell it. Like with all things, they take a small amount of functional science and take it out of context.
• The body actually makes enough carnitine and retains it in your body despite eating patterns. Only some conditions may cause a deficiency like a genetic disorder or end-stage renal disease.
• At 3 grams, carnitine can cause nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, diarrhea, and a “fishy” body odor – YIKES. Is the amount on the drink label? Nope.

[24:40] Ginseng 

• Ginseng comes from regions in Asia. This is not about bashing  anyone’s traditional medicines or cultural norms. The supplemental version is industrialized and like with many unregulated supplements, toxic metals and filler compounds are always a risk in a product.

[25:21] Taurine

• Taurine is sometimes included because of it’s physiological role in the mitochondria, the power house of the cells. However, because it is not by itself, we have no idea if this helps improve energy or boost metabolism. There’s not much information on its safety in higher doses.

[26:11] B vitamins

• B vitamins are cofactors in energy production. They are necessary for your body to use the energy produced and stored.
• The B vitamins in the vitamin B complex include thiamine, riboflavin, niacin (nicotinic acid), niacinamide (nicotinamide), the vitamin B6 group (including pyridoxine, pyridoxal, pyridoxamine), biotin, pantothenic acid, folic acid, and vitamin B12 (cobalamin).
• These vitamins are water soluble, so if you have too much for your body to use, your body pees them out. Supplements may make urine dark yellow.
• Again, most energy drinks contain other ingredients like caffeine, again, amount is not required or required to be accurate. Again, supplements are not regulated.

[27:41] Glucuronolactone

• Glucuronolactone is a naturally occurring substance produced in small amounts within the body. It’s added but very little is known about it.
• It usually is not isolated in studies and what little studies there are about it, is either combined within other ingredients or performed in rats or in vitro (petri dishes).

[28:26] Yohimbe

• Like the Ginseng ingredient, this is not about bashing any traditional medicines. Yohimbe is a bark from central and western Africa usually to enhance performance and erectile dysfunction. According to the NCCIH, in supplements, some yohimbe products contain very little yohimbine bark.
• The NCCIH reports Yohimbe (the supplement) caused stomach problems, tachycardia (a rapid heartbeat), anxiety, and high blood pressure, data was collected comparing calls about yohimbe and other substances made to the California Poison Control System between 2000 and 2006. People calling about yohimbe were generally more likely to need medical care than other callers.

[30:29] For Energy to Work, Eat Food

Caffeine and energy drinks don’t really work to increase your energy and metabolism long term. These products are not food, the primary energy source. Think about Erika’s life on stimulants. The pressure she must have been under to perform. The “on-the-go” mentality lowers our interoceptive awareness. The awareness of what our body needs and its signals to you. She had a starved mind. Unfortunately she suffered an injury that slowed her down even further. For Erika, caffeine and energy drinks really did not work.

Let’s end with One Small Bite: Slow down, pay attention. Get energy from food first, and add on some sunlight, physical activity, and social time. Check in with your stimulant consumption because it does lower appetite.

Resources:

Get Your Copy of the book – One Small Bite: Anti-Diet Stories that Empower You To Build a Positive and Secure Relationship with Food

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