What’s the secret to the 5-hour Energy shots?
It’s hump day, so if ever there was a time when someone in your office will be sucking down one of the 2 oz. shots labeled 5-hour Energy, it will be this afternoon. You’ve seen them in every 7-11 and convenience store you’ve ever entered in the past five years, but unless you are between the ages of 16 and 24 or have three jobs and 10 kids, you might have never tried it and have always wondered what’s in it.
Compared to the larger energy drinks like Red Bull, one selling point for these shots is the lack of calories with just four calories in the small 2 oz. bottle. Wondering what makes 5-hour Energy so potent? Here are the basics for one 2 oz. serving:
- 8,333% daily value of Vitamin B12
- 2,000% daily value of Vitamin B6
- 150% daily value of niacin
- A crazy mix of caffeine, taurine, and other hard to pronounce chemicals
I have no idea why any human being needs over 80 times the daily requirement of B12, especially because according to Mayo Clinic, deficiency in B12 is extremely rare.1 Niacin is the B vitamin that turns carbohydrates into energy, and everyone knows what caffeine does to your body. Taurine is that mystery ingredient found in Red Bull and most other energy drinks that may or may not improve mental concentration, depending on what study you want to believe.2
Based on the ingredients, it’s no worse than a typical energy drink, but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s good for you. At least now you know what you’re putting into your body should you need that extra boost one day. Me? I’ll stick with coffee.
Bonus note: 5-hour Energy actually makes a decaf version now which dials back the caffeine and niacin but ramps up what they call an “energy blend” which contains taurine among other things.
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