“How are you getting through junior year?” I asked the girl next to me in my chemistry class. With a Celsius energy drink in hand, she replied, “Just drink Celsius.” I was curious – I had never considered relying on caffeinated beverages as a way to manage my workload.
As assignments began to stack up, I decided to try my first energy drink. I tore open a packet of Celsius Kiwi Guava Lime powder and mixed it into my glass of water. Curiously, I read the label: 7 vitamins and minerals? Zero sugar? Just add water? Perfect, I thought to myself. I opened my research paper and began typing, glass in hand.
To my surprise, I suddenly felt focused and energized. I honed in and vowed not to get up until I finished the assignment. Sip by sip, I emptied my glass and checked the clock. It was 1 a.m., and I was still full of energy. This drink was magic – I felt focused and could stay up for hours if I wanted to. Now the issue was falling asleep. As I lay in my bed with a smile on my face, I couldn’t ignore how jittery I felt after the long night.
As the weeks went on, my grades from my late nights were skyrocketing. “This is a miracle,” I thought.
Slowly, I started to notice that getting up in the morning felt painful. I felt groggy, pains everywhere, my eyes hurt, and everything in my body was telling me to go back to sleep. Soon, I started taking naps everywhere I went – on the car ride to school, in class, the car ride home from school, and right after I got home. I kept reaching for more and more of these drinks to stop myself from falling asleep.
Five hours of sleep every night was not a sustainable lifestyle. I started to wonder if this drink was the reason I was feeling this way, so I began to research.
After diving into information on their side effects, I realized how profoundly these small drinks can impact our bodies. Stress, anxiety, and depression are all symptoms that have been reported from energy drink consumption. In addition, the ethics of marketing to adolescents have raised concerns.
In this series of articles, I will dive deeper into the side effects and ethical issues of energy drinks in relation to adolescents. I hope to create awareness so incoming and current students understand the serious impact these drinks can have on their health.
