Do Energy Drinks Make You Poop? (Answered)
Drinking energy drinks is a terrific and fast approach to improving your energy and alertness by enhancing your brain’s processes.
Quick Answer: Energy drinks don’t make you poop.
However, if you’re sensitive to caffeine or some other ingredient present in the drink, it might make you poop and disturb your bowel movement.
If you want a detailed explanation about the connection between energy drinks and your bathroom trips, keep reading.
Let’s go.
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Energy Drinks Ingredients
Caffeine
Caffeine is the primary and essential ingredient of every energy drink. The main component behind increasing your energy and increasing your concentration is caffeine.
Apart from improving your concentration, caffeine offers the following health benefits:
- Reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes
- Boost energy
- Increase focus
- Improve reaction time
- Improve memory
- Increase alertness
- Enhance physical performance
An average caffeine level of energy drinks ranges from 100mg to 300mg per serving.
According to the FDA, an adult with no medical condition can have up to 400mg of caffeine. This means every energy drink’s caffeine content is below the recommended maximum intake.
Consuming caffeine more than 400mg of may lead to some serious health problems:
- Anxiety
- Dehydration
- Insomnia
- Dizziness
- Restless
- Irritability
- Irregular heart rate
- High blood pressure
- Addiction
- Headaches
Moreover, caffeine can also make you poop by stimulating active contractions in your colon and intestinal muscles. But this isn’t the case with everyone since it only happens if you have a certain digestion condition.
Sugar
Sugar is another common ingredient found in energy drinks.
It’s usually used in energy drinks to add sweetness to the drink and to make them taste delicious.
Different energy drinks brand contain different levels of sugar, although most of the drinks are sweet because of the high amount of sugar present in them.
That being said, similar to sugary energy drinks, there are also sugar-free energy drinks available in the market.
Since people are now more health-conscious and more into fitness, sugar-free energy drinks have become quite popular.
According to AHA, a woman’s daily sugar limit is 25g of sugar. And a man’s daily sugar limit is 36g of sugar. Consuming more than that can lead to the following health issues:
- Diabetes
- Weight gain
- Acne
- Wrinkles
- Heart disease
- High risk of cancer
- Skin ageing
- Low energy
- Depression
While it’s okay to consume a small amount of sugar since it can boost your mood and increase your energy, for the time being, it’s better to consume in moderation since excessive sugar intake can be dangerous and can lead to sugar crashes and jitters.
Amino Acids
Amino acids are also a common ingredient found in most energy drinks that serve several important body functions.
Apart from that, amino acids offer the following health advantages:
- Improves mood
- Boosts exercise performance
- Prevents muscle loss
- Promotes weight loss
Herbal Extract
The most common herbal extracts found in an energy drink are Guarana Extract, Ginseng Extract, and Ginko Biloba.
Here’s a table showing you the benefits of these herbal extracts:
| Herbal Extract | Benefits |
| Guarana Extract | Improves focus Enhances memory Reduces fatigue |
| Ginseng Extract | Reduces inflammation Boosts immune system Increases energy level |
| Ginkgo Biloba | Improves brain function Reduces anxiety Fights inflammation |
Vitamins
Energy drinks also contain some essential vitamins and minerals, which are advantageous for your health. Here’s a table containing vitamins in energy drinks and their benefits:
| Vitamins | Benefits |
|---|---|
| Vitamin C | Reduces fatigue Reduces muscle soreness Boosts immunity |
| Vitamin D | Promotes healthy bones and teeth Supports immune system Regulates insulin level |
| Vitamin B3 | Prevents congenital disabilities Lower cholesterol Decrease joint pain |
| Vitamin B2 | Boosts immune system Maintains healthy hair Boosts athletic performance |
| Vitamin B6 | Improves mood Promotes brain health Prevention and treatment of anemia |
| Vitamin B12 | Boosts mood Improves mental function Improves concentration |
Do Energy Drinks Affect Your Stomach?
Drinking energy drinks too often can affect the functions of your stomach.
Energy drinks have some ingredients which can upset your stomach.
As mentioned above, energy drinks have caffeine which increases acid production in the stomach, which can irritate the stomach and gut, it can also cause heartburn.
You might also experience the following adverse effects:
- Gastritis
- Stomach pain
- Nausea
Apart from caffeine, energy drinks also have guarana extract and L-carnitine, which can also result in vomiting and abdominal pain.
If you’re not sure about the ingredients of an energy drink and whether it will affect your stomach or not, then you should avoid energy drinks and should go for something that won’t make your stomach upset.
You can also avoid an upset stomach by limiting your caffeine intake. If you consume caffeine in moderation, then they’re fewer chances of any harm to your stomach.
Are Energy Drinks Laxatives?
Energy drinks are not laxatives. But it can cause bathroom trips for some.
Caffeinated beverages such as energy drinks and coffee don’t have laxative effects. But if you feel you need to go to the bathroom after having a can of an energy drink or after having a cup of coffee, then you might be sensitive to the drink.
Moreover, excessive consumption of caffeine and energy drinks can cause several adverse effects which can affect your stomachs, such as diarrhea and loose stool since caffeine increases bile production which can affect bowel movement.
Energy drinks also contain artificial sweeteners. Several artificial sweeteners may have a laxative effect if consumed in large quantities. Drinking energy drinks may cause diarrhea in people with sensitive stomachs.
However, as long as you consume energy drinks in moderation and you’re used to drinking caffeinated drinks, you should be fine. But if you experience diarrhea or loose stool after consumption, then it’s best to avoid them.
Do Energy Drinks Make You Poop?
If you’re sensitive to caffeine, then energy drinks might make you poop.
Energy drinks are mainly used to boost energy, but they can cause an urge to poop. Several studies have shown that caffeine can activate the colon and can cause the intestine muscle to contract.
If you’re sensitive to caffeine, you might suffer diarrhea. Studies have shown that it can cause a shift in hormone and bowel stimulation when consuming energy drinks.
Can Caffeine In Energy Drinks Upset Your Stomach?
Caffeine can cause an upset stomach if you’re sensitive to caffeine or if you have to consume it excessively.
While you may not suffer from diarrhea or an upset stomach after consuming caffeine, caffeine does affect your digestive system more than you think.
Caffeinated beverages can have an impact on your bowel movement, which can also lead to diarrhea and loose stool. If you have a condition such as IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome), then your bowel movement will likely be affected by caffeine.
Moreover, it’s not recommended to drink energy drinks on an empty stomach since it contains caffeine.
Consuming caffeine on an empty stomach will produce acid which can lead to stomach pain because your tummy won’t contain any food to break down acid.
However, it’s better to know first whether your stomach is sensitive to caffeine or not before drinking an energy drink. If you feel that you’re sensitive to caffeine then it’s time to give up on caffeine and energy drinks.
Here’s an informative video discussing why coffee makes you poop:
Do Celsius Energy Drink Make You Poop?
Celsius energy won’t make you poop.
However, if you’re sensitive to caffeine and have a sensitive stomach then some ingredients in Celsius energy might cause frequent visits to the bathroom.
Celsius energy is a sugar-free drink containing 200-300mg of caffeine. It also contains some other ingredients, such as vitamins and minerals which are beneficial for your health.
Although the caffeine content of Celsius energy is pretty high, it shouldn’t have any major effect on your stomach if you have high caffeine metabolism.
However, if you’re not used to consuming this much caffeine, then Celsius energy might disturb your stomach and you’ll find yourself visiting the bathroom after drinking it.
Celsius energy also contains other ingredients, such as sucralose and guarana extract which might have laxative effects if your stomach is sensitive to them.
If you find yourself in the bathroom more often after drinking Celsius energy, then it’s better to switch to another brand since it means Celsius energy is not suiting your stomach.
Drinks That Can Settle An Upset Stomach
Water
It’s recommended to drink clear liquid when you have an upset stomach since clear liquids can make you feel better.
Water is great for that purpose, water is not only free from additional calories and sugar, but it’s also amazing for making you feel refreshed and hydrated.
If you have a bad stomach or diarrhea, it’s better to stick to water for some time, till you get better. After that, you can drink other light beverages.
Chamomile Tea
Chamomile Tea is a flavorful tea that’s pretty light on the stomach as well. It’s great for your body and offers amazing benefits.
Chamomile Tea relaxes the muscles in your digestive system and can also help in treating upset stomach, such as gas, diarrhea, loose stool.
Energy Drinks To Try
If you feel like having an energy drink regardless, you can try the following:
Final Thoughts
Energy drinks can have an impact on your stomach and can make you poop because of some ingredients used in energy drinks.
Excessive consumption of energy drinks can be dangerous for your health and can have some side effects, such as diarrhea and an upset stomach.
Caffeine in energy drinks can cause an urge to poop and can disturb your bowel movement. However, you might only experience an upset stomach if you’re sensitive to caffeine.
It’s better to avoid drinking energy drinks if you’re sensitive to caffeine.
Also, it’s best to drink energy drinks in moderation to avoid any adverse effects.
