"Red Bull": composition and effect on the body

2024 Author: Isabella Gilson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:14

"Red Bull inspires" - this is exactly what the well-known slogan used by the Austrian manufacturer in its advertising campaign for over 20 years says. Red Bull GmbH specializes in the production of non-alcoholic energy drinks, including the tonic of the same name, which we will discuss in more detail here.

History of occurrence

The history of Red Bull energy began with the fact that the Austrian businessman Dietrich Mateschitz first tried tonic drinks in Thailand. During his visit to this country, he worked as the director of international marketing for Blendax. The drink from which Red Bull originated is called Krating Daeng.

Energy tonic, tested by him, helped to cope with the syndrome of changing the time zone: this prompted the businessman to open his own production. The enterprising Austrian decided to acquire a license for the production and use of the local drink formula, and then began producing the product in his homeland in Austria. The product entered the European market in 1992, and two years later -to American.

What is Red Bull?

This is an alcohol-free energy drink, and its name is translated as "red bull". It is an energy carbonated drink. It has a light brown color, sweet and sour, somewhat tart taste, and a spicy smell. Like any carbonated drink, it is made by saturating an aqueous mixture with carbon dioxide. The content of substances in 100 g of the drink: proteins - 4.3%, carbohydrates - 95.7%, fats - 0%. Caloric content - 43 kK. Produced in cans of 0.25 and 0.5 liters. In addition, in some countries the drink is also produced in glass bottles.

Red Bull squad

The main active ingredients in this drink are caffeine and taurine. The first of these is an alkaloid that stimulates the central nervous system, the second is a biologically active substance, which is characterized by some as an amino acid, and by others as a vitamin-like substance. It should be noted that one can of Red Bull contains 80 ml of caffeine. This indicator corresponds to the amount of this substance in one cup of coffee.

According to the label, Red Bull contains the following substances: water, glucose, sucrose, caffeine, taurine, guarana, ginseng, acidity regulators (sodium citrate, magnesium carbonate, magnesium carbonate, carbon dioxide, citric acid), glucuronolactone, inositol, B vitamins, natural and artificial flavors (sugar color and riboflavin).

Non-calorie sweetener acesulfame found indrink "Red Bull Shugafri", 130-200 times sweeter than sugar. According to some reports, it is safe for the body, according to others it leads to leukemia and tumors of the mammary glands. The same applies to aspartame: there are also opposite opinions about it. Inositol is a vitamin-like substance and does not harm the body, the substances sodium citrate and xanthan gum were recognized as safe. The sugar color contained in this energy drink can have a negative effect on the stomach and liver. Thus, Red Bull is an energy drink, the composition of which is typical for most tonics, but at the same time it has a high content of B vitamins.

Effect on the body

The formula of the drink itself is approved for use, and it has been observed that in moderate doses it has tonic properties. However, Red Bull is a drink that has received mixed reviews due to its controversial composition. As a result, there are both supporters and opponents of this energy tonic.

Caffeine affects the excitation of the brain, which contributes to the activation of conditioned reflexes and increased motor activity. Taurine has a wide impact on the human body, fruitfully affects metabolic processes. According to a study conducted in France, the caffeine in the drink is present in an overestimated amount. However, toxicologists say the opposite in this regard: the content of this substance in the energy sector is within the normal range. Drinking a drink, especially if it turns out to be immoderate, has a negative effect on the nervous,cardiovascular system and leads to severe dehydration.

The manufacturer claims that Red Bull is a drink that creates the effect of cheerfulness, increases efficiency, improves emotional state, attention becomes more concentrated, however, according to observations, this feeling happens quite quickly and, moreover, with frequent use of the drink this effect no longer occurs.

If you drink, then it's right

There are cases when the immoderate or misuse of "Red Bull" has led to death. So, a young Irish basketball player, Ros Cooney, died during a game after drinking several cans of energy tonic. In addition, a case was recorded when drinking two cans of this drink with alcohol caused the death of one girl who was dancing at a disco. And this is not the only case when, when combined with alcohol, this explosive mixture led to death.

Speaking of glucuronolactone, there is a theory that this medically recognized stimulant substance was used by the US Department of Defense in the 1960s to boost the morale of troops based in Vietnam at the time. It had a calming effect in stressful situations, but the remedy had many side effects, such as hallucinations, prolonged headaches, liver disease, and brain tumors. Glucuronolactone is a metabolite derived from glucose and is present in some quantity in the human body.

Prohibited in somecountries

German he alth authorities found traces of cocaine in the drink, which is due to the use of a flavoring agent, for the manufacture of which an extract of the leaves of the coca bush is used. In this regard, a ban on Red Bull was also introduced in France, the composition of which caused mistrust, and this also happened in some lands of Germany and even in Thailand - in the homeland of this energy drink, where Red Bull Cola also fell out of favor. Later in France, the ban on the sale of the drink was lifted, due to the lack of sufficient evidence of its harm to he alth. The energy drink was banned in this country also due to the fact that the taurine contained in it was recognized as detrimental to the nervous system.

Instead of taurine in the production of drink in France began to use arginine - this is the only country for which the company allowed to make changes in the recipe. In some countries, Red Bull is sold exclusively in pharmacies, as it is considered a drug there.

Conclusion

One way or another, Red Bull, whose composition contains stimulants, has become widespread throughout the world: it is represented in more than 140 countries. In our country, it is sold in several forms, namely Energy Drink, Sugafree, Energy Shot, Energy Shot Sugafree, Cola. Varieties of this drink are somewhat different from each other in composition. For example, Red Bull Cola is loaded with caffeine from coffee beans, but Sugafree contains aspartame and acesulfame, but it does not have sucrose and glucose.

As they thinkexperts, if you use Red Bull, the composition of which includes caffeine, then only during the period of mental and physical activity, of course, subject to moderate use. It should be remembered that you can not drink it in combination with alcohol, as well as people suffering from certain diseases, including cardiovascular. It has been proven that even a he althy person after its use has symptoms that indicate a negative effect on the heart of the Red Bull energy tonic. Its price is about 70 rubles for a jar of 0.25 liters.