Is 5-Hour Energy the real deal?

When 5-Hour Energy was first introduced, it was primarily in specialty stores and certain grocery stores.  Last week I saw 5-Hour Energy next to the gas station cash register, sandwiched between the Slim Jims and Skittles.  The popular energy shot is now so popular that most people can recognize the small shot-sized bottle.  I assumed that 5-Hour Energy contained some sort of vitamin and herb mixture but I wasn't sure if it was effective.

It turns out that 5-Hour Energy contains some amino acids, B Vitamins, Citicholine (thought to help with memory), and caffeine.  I know, caffeine is the kicker and you probably forgot all the other ingredients after you read that one.  Some people are shocked that 5-Hour Energy contains caffeine and some people are not the least bit surprised.  So how much caffeine are we talking?  ConsumerLab.com did an independent analysis of the product and found one shot to contain 207 milligrams of caffeine.  Putting that in perspective, an 8 oz. cup of Starbucks coffee contains 160 milligrams of caffeine according to cspinet.org.

Okay so 5-Hour Energy contains caffeine and a bunch of other stuff, but does it actually work?  The producer of 5-Hour energy did its own study with 90 participants and obviously found individuals who took 5-Hour "significantly outperformed" those that did not.  There have been no outside studies to date but Consumer Reports states that "5-Hour Energy will probably chase away grogginess at least as well as a cup of coffee."  They also found little if any research that proves to support that Vitamin B and that other stuff give the average person a boost.

The bottom line from all that is that the caffeine content of 5-Hour Energy is likely about the only thing you would be getting to boost your day.  So unless we find out 10 years from now that Citicholine is the difference between appearing on Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune, I'll stick to my cup of overpriced Starbucks!