By Jon Haslam
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Senior Steven Smith has formed a habit. An unhealthy, but not uncommon, habit among his peers.
Smith said that energy drinks help him get going in the mornings, especially if he had been up late studying or doing school work the night before.

“I usually only have them when I need to wake up or stay focused,” Smith said, “I like the taste, but that’s not why I drink them.”

Smith said that he used to drink anywhere from two to four energy drinks within a given week, depending on how tired he was.

“My favorite energy drink is Monster, but I like pretty much all of them,” Smith said.

In the halls here it is common to spot at least a few energy drinks throughout the day. However for students like Smith, the appeal of these drinks is not just their taste but also their ability to give students the extra boost they need to get them though the day.

Energy drinks have become popular over the past few years, with the whole concept a quick rush of adrenaline throughout the body. The drinks contain many ingredients which alter the body’s energy levels including high amounts of taurine, caffeine and guarana.

With marketing names like Rockstar, Monster and Amp, the drinks are geared toward young males in their teens to early 20s.

Many energy drinks in fact are expected to reach a very specific group of consumers whether it is athletes, musicians, etc. In fact, last year with the release of video game “Halo 3″ came a new energy drink created by Mountain Dew called Game Fuel.

“I like trying the different types of (energy drinks) for both taste and seeing how much it affects me,” Smith said. “After a while, though, a lot of the drinks start tasting the same, and I’m only drinking them for energy.”

While students like Smith look to energy drinks to provide alertness, others look to gain energy in different way.

“I eat breakfast everyday,” senior James Rundle said. “It’s the most important meal of the day, and my mind just doesn’t function on an empty stomach.”

William Heisel, a doctor at Lawrence Family Care and Pediatrics said he agrees with Rundle. “When the body goes into a prolonged fast, its metabolism changes from primarily getting energy directly from food and using carbohydrate for fuel to burning fat and potentially even muscle for fuel.  Having too prolonged of a fast is not healthy.  Thus breakfast may be the most important meal,” Heisel said
Heisel has been working as a doctor for 24 years and is an office based internist/pediatrician at Lawrence Family Care.

“The solid breakfast is preferred to an equivalent liquid one,” Heisel said. “It would be absorbed more slowly, resulting in a lower glycemic index, less of an insulin surge, a longer release of fuel into the blood and would probably sustain energy better.”

While energy drinks are capable of providing energy, Heisel said continual consumption of caffeine leaves the body accustomed to the regular intakes.

“Caffeine does induce what is called tachyphylaxis.  That means that the body gets used to regular doses of caffeine.  This will not occur with occasional use.  This results in the regular user needing to take in more and more caffeine just to maintain their energy.  If they were to stop the caffeine they would suffer a drop in energy to low levels and maybe get headaches for a while,” Heisel said.

Heisel said that caffeine, in some ways can even reduce energy and in fact tried it himself.

“I have actually just recently have completely given up caffeine, and as a result my daytime awareness is much greater.”

While Rundle and Smith agree that energy throughout the day is essential, both look to acquire that boost in very different ways. For Rundle it’s a hearty breakfast and for Smith it’s a cool beverage.

“It’s just become a habit I guess,” Smith said. “I know, they (energy drinks) are not the best for me, but I get what I need from them.”