For my science project I am studying the effects of caffeinated energy drinks. Caffeine is a bitter, white crystalline xanthine that acts as a stimulant drug. A stimulant drug is a drug that gives you temporary improvements in physical or mental functions. Most energy drinks such as Red Bull, Monster and Five Hour Energy are advertised to give you a physical boost. Energy drinks work by sending a type of signal to the brain, rather than actually providing the body more energy to keep the muscles working efficiently. These statements are probably true but they do not tell you the potential dangers that energy drinks present to us as consumers. What the energy drink companies and trademarks don't tell us is that high amounts of caffeine can cause your heart to flutter and in some cases this is especially true with people that have heart conditions and young children. That why it is suggested to not drink energy drinks while doing something athletic such as running or anything that gets your heart rate going. When your heart rate is pumping from athletic then you drink an energy drink, the caffeine in the energy drink will speed up your heart rate causing a heart attack or worse, death. Some beverages such as Four Loko that contain alcohol and energy drinks causes you to not taste the alcohol and makes you become intoxicated faster than you usually would with alcohol that didn't contain energy drinks. Energy drinks generally contain methylxanthines, B vitamins, and  herbs. Other commonly used ingredients are carbonated water, guarana, yerba mate, acai, and taurine, plus various forms of ginseng, maltodextrin, inositol, carnitine, creatine, glucuronolactone, and ginkgo biloba. I really don't know what all of these ingredients are but I just figured I should mention them. One of the first energy drinks introduced in America was Dr. Enuf. It first appeared 1949, when a Chicago businessman named William Mark Swartz was suggested by c