Hear the word "caffeine" and around here you'd probably think coffee or soda.

But sales of energy drinks continue to skyrocket and many people may not realize just how much caffeine the drinks contain.

"It's not that they have necessarily dangerous levels of caffeine, but the truth is an energy drink is really more similar to a cup of coffee in terms of its caffeine content than it is to most sodas," said Consumer Reports Associate Editor Jamie Kopf Hirsh.

"The government doesn't require manufacturers of drinks to label the amount of caffeine in them. They have to say there is caffeine, but you often have no way of knowing how much unless the manufacturer puts it on voluntarily."

- The amount of caffeine in an 8-ounce serving of an energy drink ranges from 50 to 145 milligrams. A full 12-ounce container can have up to 200 milligrams.

- A brewed cup of coffee has about 100 milligrams, depending on how strong it is.

- A 12-ounce can of Coke contains about 35 milligrams of caffeine.

Some energy drinks also have up to 260 calories.

Hirsh says each everyone has a different threshold for caffeine.

"For a healthy person, there's nothing wrong with having an energy drink from time to time if you enjoy them, but you do need to be mindful of the fact that you're drinking a caffeinated beverage," Hirsh said.

"You need to keep an eye on your intake from other sources of caffeine on the days you have energy drinks, to make sure that you don't put yourself over the edge."

A don't forget, energy drinks are not for kids, who have a much lower tolerance for caffeine than adults. Most experts recommend that kids get well under 100 milligrams per day of caffeine.

"Depending on the size of the child - the smaller the kids, the less caffeine they should have," Hirsh said. "And with these drinks you could easily get 100 milligrams in one shot if you drink the whole can or the whole bottle."

Adults should have no more than 300 milligrams of caffeine per day.

Because the drinks contain multiple stimulants, the health experts at Consumer Reports say energy drinks are a "poor choice" for both young children and pregnant women.

Finally, a word of warning to adults: it's not a good idea to mix energy drinks with alcohol -- something that happens to be very popular at many bars (vodka and Red Bull is a common drink).

Consumer Reports says the caffeine in the energy drink can mask the effects of the alcohol, so you think you are less intoxicated than you really are, and that could be dangerous.


For More Information:

Energy drinks: Behind the buzz