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Energy Drinks - Do They Give You Energy or Just a Fat Gut?

I receive a ton of questions about all of these new “energy” drinks that have hit the market over the last few years. They seem to be all the rage, especially with the youth, and they promise you the world with outrageous claims of all of the super energy that you are going to have, and how you’ll be crushing the competition in your sport, and so on.

So a couple questions arise:

Are these “energy” drinks really any good for you?

Do they actually increase your energy?

Do they really have some sort of magical energy formula?

Will they help you lose weight?

First of all, let’s look at what most of these energy drinks are usually made of. Most of them are simply carbonated water loaded with gut-fattening high fructose corn syrup, caffeine, the amino acid taurine, and a few random B-vitamins thrown in for show to trick you into thinking there’s something healthy about these concoctions.

Let’s start with the high fructose corn syrup. Well, here we’ve got empty calories that will go straight to your belly fat, and that are actually even WORSE for you than plain old refined sugar.

Ok, so you say that they have low-sugar or sugar-free varieties as an alternative to the HFCS-laden energy drinks. Yes, but now you have the problem of the harmful chemicals in the artificial sweeteners.

Another problem with artificial sweeteners is that there are some researchers that believe artificial sweetener use leads people to inadvertently consume more calories and gain more weight in the long run. I won’t go into the details on that because that would fill up an entire discussion by itself. Just trust me that artificial sweeteners and artificial chemicals in food in general, are all bad news for your body!

What about the caffeine? Well, first of all, caffeine in itself doesn’t provide “energy”. Technically, the only substances that actually provide energy are calories (from carbs, protein, and fat).

However, caffeine can be an aid for livening or waking some people up, by means of stimulating the central nervous system. Keep in mind though, if you’re a regular coffee drinker, you’re probably addicted to caffeine and probably wouldn’t receive too much benefit from the caffeine in an energy drink anyway.

Besides, instead of caffeine added to some carbonated drink, I’d rather get my caffeine from a natural source like green, white, or oolong teas, which actually provide healthful antioxidants too!

Now what about that so called magical blend of taurine and B-vitamins that they load into these energy drinks? Well, big deal…you can get taurine in almost any protein source. And the vast majority of those B-vitamins are simply coming right out into the toilet in your pee. Vitamins are best obtained naturally from real food sources, not artificially added to some carbonated drink. Your body just doesn’t use fake sources of vitamins as readily as natural sources from real food.

So as you can see, in my opinion, I give all of these energy drinks a big time THUMBS DOWN! You’re better off mixing up your own homemade energy drink with some iced unsweetened green, white, and oolong teas, a little bit of 100% pure berry or pomegranate juice, and maybe a touch of a non-denatured whey protein.

Well, I hope this article cleared up some of the confusion about these energy drinks that are being so heavily marketed these days, and will help you make more informed decisions for your health.

Visit http://truthaboutabs.com/freenewsletter.html to receive a free copy of the innovative ebook, Training & Nutrition Secrets for a Lean-Body, as well as your own free personalized metabolic rate calculator.

Michael Geary (CPT) is a recognized Fitness Expert, owner of http://BusyDadWorkouts.com, contributing writer for Muscle & Fitness Magazine, and author of the internationally-selling book, The Truth about Six Pack Abs.

Basics Of Nutrition

There are many things to learn about when it comes to nutrition. But the basic concept is “What goes in must come out.” Your body is like a machine it takes what it needs from what you feed it and gets rid of the rest by urine and the bowels.

If you notice you have a problem about elimination, you should take it seriously, go see a doctor. Many people have this problem. Don’t be shy or anything, it can be very serous to your health.

The first step, is finding out if there even is a problem. First you should see how many bowel movements you have daily (BM). If you have one per day it’s not a problem, however it is better to have 2 to 3 BM’s a day and more if you eat more often. But if you find you are having one per week or 2 per month, then you have a serious problem.

For some people they might say they don’t find the time. The reason could be they are out all day and would prefer to have their BM at home rather then a public bathroom. But let me tell you, you will keep your colon quite happy if you go several times for the day. If you are looking for a trick it would be to eat a lot of raw fruits and vegetables, steamed beets and using digestive enzymes with your meals. Do whatever you can; it will be beneficial to you.

I have just lightly touched on the subject, but if you have a problem you should consult a doctor and seek help. Because this problem is not good for your health, take care of it today and look forward to tomorrow. May you live a healthy and prosper life.

Keith Hernandez is a successful freelance author that writes regularly for www.celebrex-n-vioxx-alternatives.com/ . His articles have also been featured on related sites such as www.alternativehealingtips.info/ and www.arthritis-relief-tips.info/