It’s 2 a.m. now. I just started my homework. I’ll probably be up until 4 or 5 in the morning doing it. I’ll have to then wake up at 8 a.m. tomorrow to go to school. I’ll do it all again the next day. When does the vicious cycle end?
I’m in English class. I take my shot of maximum strength 5-hour energy. As I start to sip it, I feel my face cringe; I am focusing only on drinking it down. It doesn’t taste very good, but it will keep me awake the next hour and fifteen minutes of class time (the next three hours and 45 minutes are debatable). As I place the empty bottle on my desk I look up and see the girl across the room watching me. She smiles and gives me a sympathetic look. She clearly understands my woes well.
I call this a vicious cycle because at some point in the semester there is too much work assigned to us, and not enough hours in the day to do it. We are all subjected to at least one all nighter during the semester. We drink red bull to stay awake through the night, mountain dew for a rush of sugary sweet energy, coffee to help subdue the yawns, and yet we end up asleep anyway, our textbook becoming a makeshift pillow.
The next day we begrudgingly wake for school and take another 500 mg of caffeine in an attempt to get us through the day. Coffee for the commute, iced Americano (large please!) during our afternoon break, a can of monster from the vending machine in McCormack. After all of this, we end up curled in a ball, hugging our knees in the Ryan lounge by 3 or 4 p.m.
When we get home, we can’t fall asleep because of all the caffeine running rampant through our veins. We feel tired but we can’t shut ourselves off, and so this vicious sleepless cycle continues. Until summer, that is.
Due to the necessity of energy drinks in getting through classes, here is the nutritional information on the most common ones.
Red bull
[8.3 fl oz can]
Caffeine: 76.5 mg
Sugar: 26 g
Calories 115
According to nutritiondata.self.com
5-Hour Energy
[2 fl oz/ 1 bottle]
Caffeine: 207 mg
Sugar: 0 g
Calories: 15
According to consumerlab.com
Coffee
[7 fl oz/ small cup]
Caffeine: 80-135 mg
Sugar: 0
Calories: 5
According to Journal of the American Diatec Association
Espresso
[1 fl oz/ 1 shot]
Caffeine: 100 mg
Sugar: 0
Calories: 1
According to Journal of the American Diatec Association
Monster Energy Drink
[16 fl oz/ 1 can]
Caffeine: 160 mg
Calories: 200
Sugar: 54 g
According to caloriecount.about.com
