It’s 10 am. Do you know how much caffeine is in that soda you’re drinking? K.H. Chou and L.M. Bell do. The two scientists from Auburn University measured the caffeine in 74 colas, 28 Dr. Pepper or similar-tasting beverages, 26 citrus-flavored soft drinks, and another 5 miscellaneous drinks. Science News reports on the research, and publishes a handy chart of the disturbing results. Nervous readers can also find an abstract of their research here.
That abstract, from the Journal of Food Science, reports that caffeine contents ranged from 4.9 mg/12 oz (IGA Cola) to 74 mg/12 oz
(Vault Zero). Some of the more common national-brand carbonated
beverages analyzed in this study with their caffeine contents were
Coca-Cola (33.9 mg/12 oz), Diet Coke (46.3 mg/12 oz), Pepsi (38.9 mg/12
oz), Diet Pepsi (36.7 mg/12 oz), Dr Pepper (42.6 mg/12 oz), Diet Dr
Pepper (44.1 mg/12 oz), Mountain Dew (54.8 mg/12 oz), and Diet Mountain
Dew (55.2 mg/12 oz). The Wal-Mart store-brand beverages with their
caffeine contents were Sam’s Cola (12.7 mg/12 oz), Sam’s Diet Cola
(13.3 mg/12 oz), Dr Thunder (30.6 mg/12 oz), Diet Dr Thunder (29.9
mg/12 oz), and Mountain Lightning (46.5 mg/12 oz). Beverages from 14
other stores were also analyzed. Most store-brand carbonated beverages
were found to contain less caffeine than their national-brand
counterparts.
Health, fitness and lifestyle tips for people over 50 who still like to play hard
Saturday, May 31, 2025
It is interesting to know that Diet Coke is so much more stimulating than a corn-syrupy Coke, that Dr Pepper (both) fits in between, and that Mountain Dew (both) has more kick than any of those four, but … what does it mean? My preferred drink is tea. Tea differs from these drinks, and from coffee, by providing a second drug that creates a “relax response” counter to the caffeine’s “excite response”. Still, it would be nice to know
a) how much caffeine does it take to excite a 200 lb man
b) how much caffeine DAILY does it take to excite a 200 lb man
c) what does it take to induce a caffeine “hangover”, or headache
d) how does the secondary drug in tea change the above answers
Numbers are merely information, an understanding of the results is more like knowledge or understanding.
DLMeyer – the Voice of G.L.Horton’s Stage Page Pod-Cast – now discussing Playwrights’ Platform