Some time ago, this kid was throwing a pool birthday party. He had 2 red bulls, then attempted to dive into the pool. I don’t yet know the explanation for it, but he died the instant his body entered the water. It was determined that red bull was indeed the cause of his death, as his heart simply gave up on him. And we’re talking about a 17 year old kid, therefore a really strong, really young heart.

Having learned this, I started to ask myself if red bull and other similar energy drinks are indeed drugs. Everyone’s first response is, of course, no. After all, it’s a soda, just like Pepsi, it’s neatly packaged, it sponsors just about anything, it’s everywhere. But I want to analyze this by looking at what defines a drug. After all, is red bull bad for your health? Absolutely. For the sake of the human race, I hope I don’t have to explain why it’s bad. Is it made with chemicals and all kinds of questionable substances? Oh yeah. Besides all the acids which are cleverly hidden behind high-tech names, it contains a large dosage of taurine. This would probably be the most dangerous aspect of it, as it releases a dose of adrenaline into your body that, at times, your organism is not ready for. Does it create dependency? You’d be surprised how many people are addicted to red bull, some of my friends included.

Therefore, when viewed from this perspective, the logical conclusion is that it’s definitely a drug. Ok, fine, why is it still sold in stores like it’s just another friendly product for your enjoyment? Again, the obvious first answer is “people know what they’re buying, they can see the ingredients clearly written, and therefore it’s their business if they want to consume it”. By this logic, if all other drugs, regardless of the danger, were sold in stores in professional packages and having all ingredients written on it, would that make it ok? Of course not, as some people are simply too…well, simple, for the lack of a better term, to understand the risks they are taking, so the production of these substances is deemed illegal.

Yet red bull and other energy drinks are still going strong. Someone in the health care department deemed them ok for distribution. I'm, of course, not bashing anyone who consumes energy drinks. If you like them, more power to you. I guess I'm just questioning the products and the logic behind their existence...

Take from this what you want, thanks for reading my post.