Healthy Energy Drinks…
In my constant pursuit for healthier alternatives I started researching healthy energy drinks to see if they even existed. Now, I need to tell you that I have NEVER drank an energy drink in my life so my search was not for me but for my boys!
I refuse to buy Red Bull, Monsters, Rock Stars, Kick Starts….but when I leave for a day or two I usually return to the recycle bin full of these or Starbucks canned something?! and boy does it p@$$ me off. 🙂 My boys know better but don’t do better. So, for the sake of my sanity and my children’s health I decided to find out if healthy energy drinks actually existed!
I know there are Mom’s cringing as they read this post (I understand) BUTTTTT you know as well as I do that our kids, husbands, and their friends are drinking these energy drinks whether we want them to or not so finding an option that even I can embrace is well worth my time & their health. Hopefully this information will help you too.
Healthy Energy Drinks Do Exist! YAHOO…I think.
So here it is ladies and gents…the healthy energy drinks industry is slim but it does exist. Here’s my review of what there is to offer with my #1 Healthy Energy Drinks choice for my family & friends.
P.S. I found that energy drink advertising is no different than personal care…don’t trust the label!
- FRS Energy cans – They have several different flavors, they advertised as natural but after reading the ingredients they are sweetened with acesulfame potassium (also referred to as Ace-K) and sucralose (also known as Splenda)! Absolutely not natural. One is a known carcinogen and the other is really bad for spiking blood glucose levels & causing metabolic syndrome (obesity). I’m trying to prevent diabetes in my family! Immediately took it off the Healthy Energy Drinks list for my family. They actually target athletes which makes me furious to think that they are paying these famous athletes to up their sales when the product itself has such junk in it. Yes, there are some great ingredients but they do not make up for these 2 nasty ones.
- Verve Energy Drink – Again several flavors, low carb option etc. but contains Taurine (as most energy drinks do) and a few other ingredients which raise a red flag for me. “Natural Flavors” always makes me nervous – this doesn’t mean that they really aren’t all natural but it doesn’t mean they are either. Some also contain Sucralose on top of the fructose…so I decided that this energy drink was not the healthiest option either and continued my search.
- NEON Energy Drink – At first glance it looks like any other energy drink. Flashy can with the words all natural on the front, but when I read the ingredients I was gratefully surprised. They really are ALL natural ingredients from fruits and better yet the caffeine is from Green Tea & a little lower than most at 80 mg per 8.4 oz. can. No artificial flavors, naturally sweetened with fructose, contains prickly pear, passion fruit & Gotu Kola – awesome plants with tons of wonderful health benefits.
Sugars in NEON Energy Drink: Fructose & Crystalline Fructose.
For those concerned about the 25g of sugar per 8.4oz can of Neon – one 8oz cup of orange juice contains 25g of sugar (fructose). NeonLight (coming Summer 2014) will contain 0 sugars and 0 calories!
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Fructose: Fructose is called fruit sugar because of its presence in fruits. Fructose is a monosaccharide, meaning it is a single sugar molecule consisting of six carbon atoms, six oxygen atoms and 12 hydrogen atoms. The fructose that you eat can be directly absorbed through your small intestine into your blood. The process of fructose absorption can be very rapid if the source of fructose is high-fructose corn syrup (spikes blood glucose levels). Fructose absorption from fruits is less rapid because of the presence of fiber and other phytonutrients in fruit (Neon sugars are all fruit).
- Crystalline Fructose: Crystalline fructose is derived from sugar cane, sugar beets, and corn. Extra processing steps result in the crystalline product that is close to 100% pure fructose. Federal standards define crystalline fructose be at least 98% fructose with the remaining 2% as water and minerals. This nearly pure fructose sweetener is 20% sweeter than sucrose (also known as table sugar) and high fructose corn syrup and has been around for about 20 years.
- Crystalline fructose offers several unique benefits that make it more advantageous to use compared to high fructose corn syrup and other sweeteners. These are also some of the reasons we are seeing it so widely used today.Sweetness – Because crystalline fructose is sweeter than table sugar and HFCS, it is a valuable sweetener for low calorie, sugar-free foods and beverages since less can be used to achieve the same sweetness. This saves money and carbohydrate contribution for the same sweetness impact.Improved product texture, taste and stability – This form of fructose is easily combined with other sweeteners and starches to not only boost sweetness but also improve cake height in baked goods and provide excellent “mouth-feel”, surface browning color and pleasant aroma during baking. Since fructose does not hydrolyze in the same manner as sucrose, product flavor remains stable for extended storage periods.Low Glycemic Index – Fructose has a low glycemic index (19-22) compared to other sweetener sources such as honey (55), High Fructose Corn Syrup (62) and table sugar (64). Since the bodies’ glycemic response is dependent on both the type AND amount of carbohydrate consumed, lower index and less sweetener, aids in the development of foods with low glycemic loads ideal for sugar controlled foods and beverages.
- I was curious enough to order a case & let the boys be the taste testers. Damon liked the taste but most of all the energy and did not feel jittery. Trent and his friends are huge fans! (Of course I limit them to 1 a day.) Oh, I forgot to mention it glows Neon green under a black light because it contains Quinine, a nutrient found in the bark of the Cinchona tree that also give Tonic water it’s fluorescence. Click Neon Energy Drink for a full list of ingredients.
So there you have it. Healthy energy drinks do exist and I believe they will continue to grow as we all become aware consumers demanding real ingredients! I’m excited to bring you a healthy energy drinks option worth researching.
So in advance, I want to thank you for being proactive in your pursuit of total wellness as well as thank those who choose to become a part of our Education Beats Medication community and get my Total Wellness Series.
Be sure to let me know what you & your family think of it!
NEON energy drink UPDATE 4/18/15: Just spoke with the company and found out that NEON is now sold through ViSalus reps only. I am not a representative but you can click here to order NEON or contact a representative.
In my constant pursuit for healthier alternatives I started researching healthy energy drinks to see if they even existed. Now, I need to tell you that I have NEVER drank an energy drink in my life so my search was not for me but for my boys!