He found one of the energy drinks, Hair of the Dog, contained no caffeine. He found a significant range of caffeination.
In order to determine how much caffeine is contained in various brands of energy drinks, toxicology professor Bruce Goldberger of the University of Florida tested 10 drinks. He's always assumed energy drinks are more potent than Mountain Dew or Coke, but he says it's unclear exactly how much caffeine they contain because it's not labeled on the can. "I can skateboard longer and it tastes good," Cathcart says. Last year, teenagers and young adults spent almost $2.3 billion on heavily caffeinated drinks with names like Monster, Red Bull, Amp and Full Throttle.Įvan Cathcart, 19, says a can of Red Bull gives him a quick boost when he's skateboarding. Your Health Coffee: A Little Really Does Go a Long Way