Keeping up with school, sports, friends, family, and other activities takes a lot of energy. It's tempting at times to reach for a cup of coffee or an energy drink to give you a boost or to jumpstart your brain in the morning. Caffeine in reasonable doses is safe to consume. Americans drink more than 400 million cups of coffee each day. But while energy drinks often promise special formulas to get you going they mostly rely on large doses of caffeine. A common ingredient in energy drinks, guarana, contains twice as much caffeine as coffee, and others, such as ginseng, enhance the effect of stimulants. Caffeine can be addictive, and consuming energy drinks in large quantities or too often can cause anxiety, sleeplessness, or even leave you feeling more tired. The effects of energy drinks become even riskier when they're combined with alcohol.

Originally released by Cambridge Educational, 2019. Streaming video file encoded with permission for digital streaming by Infobase on October 02, 2019.

The Dangers of Energy Drinks (6:05); .