What Are The Healthiest Energy Drinks?

What Are The

<span data-metadata=""><span data-buffer="">Healthiest Energy Drinks?

Discover the top 5 healthiest energy drinks on the market today, to boost your energy levels without compromising your health.

In this guide:

Are “healthy” energy drinks really healthy?
Are there any drinks that can strongly boost your energy, without causing health damages?
What to look for and what to avoid in a healthy energy drink
The top 5 healthiest energy drinks on the market today, according to nutritionists

For many people, energy drinks are almost a “magic pill” to boost their energy levels. Whenever they feel sluggish, need a boost for a workout, a meeting, or an important exam – they take their drink and get a near-instant kick.

The problem is: most energy drinks come with unpleasant side effects, such as energy crashes, jitters, or even irregular heartbeats. More importantly, studies show that they are also very bad for our health, by loading up our bodies with excessive amounts of sugar, caffeine, and synthetic chemicals that can cause a wide range of serious health issues, from cardiovascular diseases to several types of cancer.

As consumers are becoming more conscious of their health and well-being, a lot of new beverage brands are flooding the market with a new kind of drink: the so-called “healthy” energy drinks.

These healthier energy drinks all promise the same boost of energy than a classic Red Bull, without jitters or energy crashes. They all claim to be better for your health, by cutting down sugar, calories, caffeine, and basically removing all the “bad stuff” from their drinks. Some even claim to boost your immune system and overall health with vitamin & antioxidant infusions!

Old energy drinks:

Quick boost of energy followed by energy “crashes”
High in sugar and calories
Contains a lot of unhealthy artificial sweeteners
No benefits aside from energy boost

New energy drinks (claims)

Sustained boost of energy without crashes
Low in sugar and calories
Contains no or less artificial sweeteners
May boost immune system on top of increasing energy

The question you may ask yourself is:

Are “healthy” energy drinks really healthy, or is it just a marketing hype that is surfing on the “better for you” trend?

What are the key things to look for in a “healthy” energy drink? And what are the things to avoid at all costs? Is it even possible to find an energy drink that is both effective (boosts your energy levels fast, Red Bull-style) and healthier for you?

This guide was specifically made to help you narrow down the choices of healthier energy drinks available on the market today. Our guide has been carefully reviewed by professional nutritionists and dieticians, to ensure high-quality and accurate information.

The alarming health burden of energy drinks

People drink over 26 billion liters of energy drinks every year according to Statista estimates. That’s over 3 times higher than the consumption of orange juice - one of the most popular beverages in the world.

While it’s true that energy drinks can provide a quick energy boost due to the high amounts of caffeine and sugar they contain, it’s not a secret that most of these drinks are everything but healthy...

The most popular energy drinks are filled with significant amounts of sugar synthetic caffeine, additives, and other harmful substances that can seriously damage our body over time.

Did You Know?

A can of Rockstar energy drink contains 63 grams of added sugar, the equivalent of 16 teaspoons of sugar

That’s 152% higher than the daily recommended amount

High amounts of added sugar have been found to increase your risk of cardiovascular problems, diabetes, dementia, cholesterol, high blood pressure, and several types of cancer.

Another risk is the excessive dose of caffeine many energy drinks contain. The FDA recommends that your daily caffeine intake should not exceed 400 mg a day. Anything above that level can damage your heart and your brain.

Several popular energy drinks contain between 300 and 400 mg of caffeine, meaning that drinking them may be dangerous if you take several cans a day or drink coffee during the day.

“Some energy drinks contain high levels of caffeine that can be dangerous and negatively impact your heart, not to mention your anxiety and ability to sleep,”

Valerie Gately, MS, RDN, LD

Registered dietitian

“Consuming too much of the drinks can result in high blood pressure, irregular heartbeat, anxiety, and insomnia, and the drinks are particularly dangerous for adolescents,”

Frank Hu, Fredrick J.

Stare Professor of Nutrition and Epidemiology and chair of the Department of Nutrition at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Overall, energy drinks are certainly not healthy, and should be consumed in moderation.

The health burden of energy drinks

Is there such a thing as a “healthy” energy drink? The nutritionist’s take

As the number of health-conscious consumers is growing steadily, a lot of new brands are offering so-called “healthy” energy drinks: formulas that are supposed to be better for you, or even provide health benefits such as weight loss and stronger immunity.

Brands like Celsius and Zoa all claim to have healthy energy drinks, capable of giving you a clean boost of energy without loading up your body with sugars, preservatives, and bad artificial sweeteners.

But are these new energy drinks really healthy? Or is it just marketing positioning to sell more cans? According to nutritionists, the answer is not that clear cut…

In fact, several energy drinks presented as “healthy” are not necessarily healthier than your average can of Red Bull or Monster. Some of them can be equally bad, if not worse

One of the key issues with drinks labeled as “sugar-free” is that they often use very high doses of artificial sweeteners to make the taste sweet.

While natural sweeteners like stevia are safe to consume, many drinks positioned as healthy use Ace-k and aspartame – two high-intensity sweeteners with serious health consequences.

Aspartame and Ace-K: The Silent Killers

Many “healthy” energy drinks are packed with unhealthy artificial sweeteners to make the taste sweet, which may cause long-term health damage

Aspartame

Synthetic chemical obtained from genetically modified bacteria
May cause headaches, anxiety, insomnia
May increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and certain types of cancer
May increase appetite and promote weight gain
In the list of substances to avoid, according to weight loss recommendations from the World Health Organization

Acesulfame potassium (Ace-K)

So, does it mean that no energy drink can really be healthy? According to nutritionists, there are some drinks on the market that are definitely better for your health, and which may have some health benefits, depending on their formulation.

If we look at what the industry is currently offering, there are indeed a select few beverages that are not as unhealthy as traditional energy drinks. For instance, drinks that are low on sugar, rich in vitamins and antioxidants, and formulated with real natural ingredients are definitely a much healthier option than the Red Bulls of this world. In fact, beverages that use clinically-reviewed functional ingredients may even provide tangible health benefits, although more research is needed"

Dr. Andrew Shulman, New York-based certified nutritionist

There are several healthier energy drinks that contain ingredients that have been proven to provide functional health benefits - including ginseng, folic acid, vitamin B, or ginger root, to name a few.

Ginseng was found to cause a significant increase in the number of T-cells, a key type of cells involved in adaptive immune response. These findings indicate that ginseng, an ingredient present in certain energy drinks, may promote a healthy immune system.

According to a meta-analysis of 30 randomized controlled trials involving 82,334 participants, folic acid supplements can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease by 4% and decrease the risk of stroke by 10%. These clinical findings suggest that folic acid, a key ingredient found in certain functional energy drinks, may be beneficial to cardiovascular health.

Examples of healthier energy drinks:

What are the key benefits of healthy energy drinks?

Here are the main benefits you can reasonably expect from healthier energy drinks, according to nutritionists and up-to-date clinical studies:

Improve energy levels while reducing the risk of “energy crashes”.

Healthier energy drinks tend to use alternative ingredients that can provide a more sustained boost of energy than caffeine. Clinical studies indicate that natural ingredients such as ginger root or panax ginseng can enhance mental and physical energy compared to placebo. Further, the energy boost caused by these “alternative energy boosters” can be just as strong as traditional energy drinks, with fewer side effects on average. Healthier drinks also typically contain less caffeine than usual, which reduces the risk of sudden energy crashes and unpleasant jitters.

May improve focus and help clear brain fog.

Healthier energy drinks can still contain high concentrations of neuro-stimulants, including caffeine. As long as the dosage is safe, these stimulants can help improve mental performance and focus. For example, L-Tyrosine, a safe natural ingredient present in some energy drinks, has been clinically proven to decrease reaction time and improve working memory in n-back cognitive tests. Ginger root has also been linked to enhanced mental performance in several studies.

What to look for in a healthy energy drink:

With dozens of products that claim to be healthy and “good for you”, it can be difficult to know what is factually true from what isn’t. Especially since these products tend to be heavily marketed.

To help you choose an energy drink that is genuinely healthier for you, we prepared a list of key “green flags” – following the latest recommendations from leading nutritionists.

The Top 5 Healthiest Energy Drinks On The Market Today, According To Nutritionists

To help you choose an energy drink that is both healthier for you and effective, we’ve compiled a list of the top 5 healthiest energy drinks. This list was carefully curated in partnership with certified nutritionists, and takes several factors into consideration, including: ingredients quality, health impact, taste, value for money, and verified customer reviews.

PROS:

CONS:

Alpine Bliss is a premium, fast-growing Swiss brand of flavored sparkling water offering functional health benefits, using clinically studied ingredients. The Alpine Bliss Dopamine Energy Booster is a powerful, fruity energy drink that combines pure alpine water sourced from the European Alps with natural energy-boosting ingredients.

One of the standout features of this Alpine Bliss is its ability to provide a strong, sustained boost of energy for several hours, without causing unpleasant energy crashes often associated with traditional energy drinks. This is achieved through a unique blend of high-quality plant-based ingredients, including 70 mg of caffeine from natural sources, L-tyrosine, panax ginseng, and high-purity ginger root extract.

Consumers report experiencing a powerful and clean boost of energy, comparable to that of regular energy drinks, without jitters or crashes.

Aside from enhancing mental and physical energy, this formula is also known for creating a distinct feeling of well-being thanks to a proprietary blend of plant-based ingredients called DopaBliss. This natural blend is specifically designed to boost dopamine levels – the “happy hormone” responsible for making us feel good and happy.

From a nutrition standpoint, the drink is also scoring pretty well. The formula contains zero added sugar, just 10 calories per can, and only 4 grams of natural sugar from wild berries. It doesn’t contain any harmful artificial sweeteners like aspartame or ace-K. The drink is also a rich source of vitamin B6 and B12 – two vitamins that promote a healthy metabolism.

Beyond its functional health benefits, the Alpine Bliss formula also performs well on taste, according to consumers. Users praise its fruity wild berries flavor and refreshing fine bubbles. It strikes a delicate balance of sweetness and freshness, and delivers an enjoyable drinking experience.

On the minus side, we note that the drink is quite expensive ($3.95 per can) – which can be explained by the “fancy” ingredients that it contains, including extracts of saffron and ginger roots (some of the most expensive spices in the world). We also note that the drink is frequently out of stock, because it’s produced in limited batches as of now.