There is a wide array of differing information when it comes to energy drinks and food bars. One vindication for this is due to there being hundreds of brands which utilize generic names for their manufactured goods. Anyone can call a beverage an "energy drink" or "energy bar," but this can mean almost anything. This means you have to carefully look at each product and see what it's made from. To help you navigate through all the energy drinks and food bars available on the market today, we'll be giving you some handy techniques for figuring out what is reality and what is hype.

Be aware of where the energy in these drinks really comes from, the caffeine content. This is, of course, the same stimulant that motivates people all over the world to drink coffee or tea in the morning and throughout the day. What you'll find in these energy drinks is an exacerbated amount of caffeine when compared with a cup of coffee. Drinking energy drinks to quench your thirst results in your consuming greater amounts of them in a shorter amount of time as you gulp them down quickly. This alone can have some severe side effects associated with too much caffeine such as anxiety, insomnia, headaches, and even heart troubles. So you may want to return to the old fashioned way of getting your caffeine and switch to plain water, or at least a caffeine-free beverage when you exercise.

As an exchange for energy drinks that are jam packed with sugar and caffeine, a lot of health food stores and supermarkets are presenting all natural beverages with no additional stimulants. These include fruit juice blends fortified with "superfoods" such as spirulina or blue green algae, coconut water or kombucha tea, which has been used in Chinese medicine for centuries.

If you're looking for a healthy energy drink that has a moderate amount of caffeine and no artificial ingredients, why not drink green or black tea? Besides having a reduced amount of caffeine in comparison to coffee or other energy drinks, tea has a lot of antioxidants and is a milder option for maintaining your alertness. You can consume tea at either a hot or cold temperature, although you should be aware of high sugar contents when buying bottled iced tea from a store. Even coffee, when you don't add a ton of mild or sweetener is better for you than most energy drinks. The most excellent way to drink coffee is black, and darker roasts, and if at all possible organic are higher in antioxidants and typically lower in caffeine. Coffee and tea are energy drinks where you are least know what it is you are drinking.

You don't want to cause dehydration by consuming energy drinks during exercise. Most energy drinks are high in calories and the sugar in them is a natural dehydrator so it's best to avoid them during exercise. Instead consider relying on water instead to keep you hydrated. You may find various thirst quenchers or waters with added sugars available on the market today but these are to be avoided as well. So stick to basic flat tasteless water for best energy drink out there. Energy drinks and food bars as you can see, require forethought and good judgment. Since most companies are not concerned with your wellbeing so much as their own deep pockets it's important that you be aware of those that are really good for you and not just listen to all the hyped up advertising. With so many energy drinks available you must find out which ones really are good and which are more of a junk food in a "healthy package".