by VisualOrgasm

Are Energy Drinks Really Addictive?

A question that is commonly raised by people considering starting to make use of energy-drinks is as to whether the drinks are addictive. The people who ask this question are health conscious and prudent people. What they are afraid of is starting to make use of a product that will ultimately enslave them; to the point where they simply can’t stop using it even when they want to. It is actually because of the failure to ask questions like this that the people we know as alcohol addicts find themselves in their bad predicaments. So the question as to whether energy-drinks are addictive is quite a well placed one.

Now what can be said, as a simple answer to the question as to whether energy drinks are addictive, is that most energy-drinks are only mildly addictive. By this we mean that they are the sorts of products you will definitely feel a craving for once you stop using; but not the sorts of products that you are likely to experience actual withdrawal symptoms once you stop using.

There are two mechanisms for this mild addictive effect associated with the energy drinks.

The fact that the energy drinks lead to a nice feeling means that they have the potential to addict, albeit in a mild way. Anything that can make you feel nice would tend to have this effect. And that applies to absolutely everything that makes us feel good (including the most innocent things like food and even friendships). The nice feeling you experience, once you make use of the energy drink, triggers the brain reward mechanism (which is operated through neuro-chemicals such as dopamine). The brain is consequently activated to desire more and more of the same things that make it feel good. Nevertheless, addictions triggered this way tend to be relatively mild, and they actually serve a useful role in terms of ensuring our survival. The capacity for these addictions is part of our genetic make-up, which is a result of evolutionary adaptations acquired over millions of years. This sort of addiction will only make you feel that you really desire the energy drink, especially for the first few days after ceasing to use it. But is very unlikely to cause you any physical withdraw symptoms.

Some of the energy drinks do, however, contain ingredients that can be truly addictive. Many of them, for instance, contain caffeine. This is the same active ingredient found in coffee, and we know that coffee can be mildly addictive. But once again, the addictive effect would tend to be rather mild, and not the sort to cause any major withdrawal symptoms once one ceases using the energy drink; unless the sort of energy-drink you have been using contains truly high levels of caffeine. But in almost all cases, even where the highest levels of caffeine are used, the worst one can expect are mild withdrawal symptoms – definitely nothing like what we experience when we try to stop smoking or drinking alcohol.

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