Off late, more and more energy drinks feature caffeine or taurine. These two items have become rather common ingredients and are quite popular among athletes, college students, and adolescents.
It has been found that both caffeine and taurine are safe for consumption at lower quantities. But the moment they become unregulated, that is when problems crop up and can lead to medical complications. But, what exactly is the difference between caffeine and taurine? Or, do they have the same purpose ? Let us find out.
What are these ingredients? Where are they found? How do they influence the human body?
Caffeine and Taurine Compared
Let us start with caffeine first. This is a naturally produced substance that is found in coffee beans. In its simplest state, it is a natural product. But are there other synthetic versions of this? Yes, coffee beans can be produced synthetically and can be added to various products as a replacement for original caffeine.
When you consume caffeine, it is said to stimulate the central nervous system and might relieve you from a number of stressful situations. It can also help you in getting rid of fatigue for a short period of time. This temporarily helps your stay active. This is perhaps why it is included in energy drinks for athletes. However, it does not offer any nutritional value.
On the other hand, Taurine might help in the overall neurological development in human beings. Health Canada identifies it as a byproduct of the sulphurous amino acids cysteine and methionine, that is essentially produced naturally and is most commonly found in meats, dairy products and fish. However, you could fetch Taurine from various dietary supplements as well. It is also known for its antioxidant properties and because it helps to support cardiovascular function.
Are There Any Side Effects Relate to Caffeine and Taurine?
Both of these ingredients for energy drinks for athletes are safe at lower concentrations but pose to be a threat at higher concentrations. Let us have a look at this.
Caffeine is known to have some side effects like an increased heart rate, coupled with restlessness, depressions, anxiety, tension and similar issues. According to the American Medical Association Council on Scientific Affairs, there are two restrictions of the daily consumption of caffeine. You could either have 3 cups of coffee of 8 oz. capacity or you could keep it to not more than five servings of a health drink containing caffeine.
In the case of taurine, Health Canada considers you can go up to as high as 3,000 mg of the ingredient per day. Ideally, this is known as the safe limit of taurine. Anything in excess of 3,000 mg of taurine per day is excreted out from the body by the kidneys. In general, there is not much information about the adverse side effects of higher level consumptions of taurine.
When it comes to athletes, taurine has been known to have a lot of beneficial impacts including improving physical performance, steering more mental strength and physical energy. This is why athletes prefer to consume these health drinks during their training sessions.
Wrapping Up
This pretty much sums up the essential differences between taurine and caffeine: these are the interesting supplements that can be easily found naturally and act upon your nervous system to help you focus better, feel less tired and get more of yourself for quite a short period of time as a working out session or competition! What’s more? You do not need to consume them in excess, that’s another keypoint!