PAUL WOODY COLUMN: Energy drinks are dubious solutions

The Snapple folks proudly and cleverly proclaim their beverages are made with the "best stuff on earth."

What, then, is a nice company like Snapple doing with a drink like this -- Venom Death Adder?

Venom Death Adder is made with stuff, but it is not necessarily the best stuff on earth.

Venom Death Adder is an "energy" drink, and it sits on the shelves of grocery and convenience stores along with Red Bull, Rip It, Amp and Monster, to name just a few.

The drinks are expensive. An 8.4-ounce can of Red Bull costs $2.09 at your favorite local grocery store.

They are filled with carbonated water, sugar, various herbs and lots of caffeine.

And while the companies that produce them call these fluids energy drinks, the energy they provide is not the type of energy most athletes need.

Calories provide energy, no matter the drink. What energy drinks offer is stimulation from the caffeine and other caffeine-like substances.

Yet, they are not without good points.

"If somebody finds them tastier than water and wouldn't drink enough water otherwise, they offer rehydration," said Dr. Stephen Bickston, associate chairman of the department of gastroenterology at the VCU Healthcare System.

"And they allow people to replete their carbs for recovery. If a person doesn't get some carbs shortly after a hard workout, the revved-up metabolism can eat muscle rather than burning fat."

These drinks are not for everybody.

Rip It is "not recommended for use by children, pregnant women or people who are sensitive to caffeine or with a medical condition."

The label on Venom suggests no more than three bottles be consumed per day, and even that might be pushing it.

Three 16.9-ounce bottles of Venom would provide 580 milligrams of caffeine. Few people need that much stimulation.

"There's clear value for what a lot of people call extreme athletes," Bickston said. "There's less so for folks who are active and trying to stay in shape."

No wonder some NFL players will consume multiple cans of an energy drink before a game. They don't mind feeling as if they could, and should, run through a wall.

High school athletes do not need these drinks for practices or games. If a teen-ager requires an excess of caffeine to compete, he should not be competing in the first place.

"These drinks are safe enough to be on the shelves," Bickston said. "But to my mind, many of these drinks have far too long a list of ingredients.

"For some of the micronutrient or herbal ingredients, having more may translate into a higher risk of toxicity."

The overriding purpose of energy drinks is to line the pockets of the companies that produce them.

They are a shortcut for conditioning and competition. Shortcuts rarely are good things.

"They are OK in moderation," Bickston said. "But for the average athlete, water and a healthy snack are as good and cheaper."

A balanced diet filled with fruits, vegetables and lean meats, along with plenty of water -- 64 ounces per day is best -- is all most athletes need.

If energy is an issue, there is a better solution than consuming Red Bull, Amp or Venom.

Go to bed earlier.

A good night's sleep really is some of the best stuff on earth.