The Caffeine Conundrum

Just a few years ago if you were to stumble into a café down the street you’d see every seat taken by someone, whether the old retiree doing his daily crossword puzzle or the group of young tweens clammoring about the latest hottie: this plethora of people all linked together by one thing, coffee.

Today downtown cafés remain frequent and daily stops for many, but a growing number of caffeine addicts have adapted to their ever increasingly busy schedules by getting their daily fix from easier and faster commodities than coffee.

In an attempt to provide caffeine junkies with an alternate source of their favorite substance, in 1997 a company by the name of RedBull began to market and sell a drink that would provide the energy-giving caffeine without the hassle of a scalding cup of coffee.

RedBull gives the kick to those who needed it with the added bonus of supplying taurine, and vitamins such as vitamin B-6 and B-12. These bonus supplements give habitual coffee drinkers one more reason to choose RedBull as their morning refreshment.

RedBull’s popularity does not solely rely on those who switch from drinking coffee; through shrewd marketing and advertising RedBull quickly became a staple for college students.

“It’s soda but with a kick of energy afterwards,” junior psychology major Paul Anderson said.

Anderson used RedBull to stay awake driving and because he was having “one of those days.”

This new energy market had companies scrambling to develop their own energy drinks in an attempt to soak up the profit. Companies such as National Beverage Corp., which makes the energy drink Rip It, tried to attract more women by developing drinks like Rip It Chic, a sugar-free energy drink that sports a bold pink or purple design.

With energy drinks pulling in over three billion dollars in 2005, corporations began providing new ways for consumers to tap into the powers of caffeine.

Energy bars emerged.

Energy bars are multifunctional; not only could they be used as a snack to satisfy an insatiable hunger but they could also be used for an extra boost.

Even old brand names, such as Snickers and Jelly Belly, have released energy giving forms of their original product in an attempt to draw brand loyal costumers to their caffeinated merchandise.

Snickers’ Marathon bar aims to entice in athletes and non-athletes looking for a quick energy fix. While the chocolaty treat only contains 3.3 milligrams of caffeine, the energy bar packs 18 different proteins and six different sugars.

Another familiar brand, Jelly Belly, sells its trademark jellybeans infused with 50 milligrams of caffeine. These Extreme Sport Beans only come in two flavors currently, cherry and watermelon, but with growing popularity more bean flavors are sure to sprout up.

Realizing that not all consumers have the opportunity to sit and casually sip an energy drink before going about their day, some companies began to condense the packaging of energy to small shots that can be easily downed in just one gulp. One such energy shot, 5-Hour Energy, claims to provide five hours worth of energy from just a two ounce bottle chock full of caffeine and vitamins.

For those in a hurry but have a craving for their daily energy boost, 5-Hour Energy can provide just that, despite its small stature.

For those consumers who don’t want to drink anything to get their energy the perfect product Kickers 80 Hour Energy Spray Vitamin Supplement seems like a 0.7 fluid ounce holy grail. With a few sprays under the tongue you will have supplied your body with the same amount of caffeine as a cup of coffee.

“It’s like really strong,” said sophomore Ellie Dekle who used the spray she got as a present from her brother.

Somewhere between 14 and 25 percent of Americans, depending on the study, have chronic bad breath.

This statistic probably entered the minds of the creators of Foosh Energy Mints and Jolt Gum. Both products provide clean mouths with an extra bonus of caffeine.

Two pieces of Jolt Caffeine Energy Gum contains 90 milligrams of caffeine, roughly half the amount in a cup of joe at Einstein Bros Coffee, but only one Foosh Energy Mints has 100 milligrams of caffeine, with the same breath freshening power.

You might want for your caffeine intake to be more productive and practical. To save you time, companies have created every day items that contain caffeine. Now instead of waking up and turning on the coffee pot then hoping the shower, why not just hop in the shower and bathe with Shower Shock Caffeinated Soap?

The soap’s caffeine is absorbed directly into the skin. Each four-ounce bar of soap contains 12 servings, or showers, of 200 milligrams of caffeine-that’s like drinking two and a half Red Bulls.

With such diversity of caffeine-related products, it’s a wonder what will come on the market next or if anything will ever be as popular an energy source as coffee. Will downtown cafés become things of the past as people adapt and start using faster more convenient sources of caffeine or will we always be able to go downtown and enjoy a latté while laughing inwardly at the gossiping girls and retiree stumped by his crossword puzzles?

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Feb 6 2009. Filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry