BackgroundEnergy drink consumption has continued to gain in popularity since the 1997 debut of Red Bull, the current leader in the energy drink market. Although energy drinks are targeted to young adult consumers, there has been little research regarding energy drink consumption patterns among college students in the United States. The purpose of this study was to determine energy drink consumption patterns among college students, prevalence and frequency of energy drink use for six situations, namely for insufficient sleep, to increase energy (in general), while studying, driving long periods of time, drinking with alcohol while partying, and to treat a hangover, and prevalence of adverse side effects and energy drink use dose effects among college energy drink users.MethodsBased on the responses from a 32 member college student focus group and a field test, a 19 item survey was used to assess energy drink consumption patterns of 496 randomly surveyed college students attending a state university in the Central Atlantic region of the United States.ResultsFifty one percent of participants (n = 253) reported consuming greater than one energy drink each month in an average month for the current semester (defined as energy drink user). The majority of users consumed energy drinks for insufficient sleep (67%), to increase energy (65%), and to drink with alcohol while partying (54%). The majority of users consumed one energy drink to treat most situations although using three or more was a common practice to drink with alcohol while partying (49%). Weekly jolt and crash episodes were experienced by 29% of users, 22% reported ever having headaches, and 19% heart palpitations from consuming energy drinks. There was a significant dose effect only for jolt and crash episodes.ConclusionUsing energy drinks is a popular practice among college students for a variety of situations. Although for the majority of situations assessed, users consumed one energy drink with a reported frequency of 1 – 4 days per month, many users consumed three or more when combining with alcohol while partying. Further, side effects from consuming energy drinks are fairly common, and a significant dose effect was found with jolt and crash episodes. Future research should identify if college students recognize the amounts of caffeine that are present in the wide variety of caffeine-containing products that they are consuming, the amounts of caffeine that they are consuming in various situations, and the physical side effects associated with caffeine consumption.

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The purpose of this research was to assess money spent and calories consumed by college students from fast food restaurants located on and around a southern college campus. A convenience sample (n = 152) of undergraduate college students (aged 18 -24) at a southern university participated in a survey that measured dietary intake from seven local fast food chains using a researcher developed food frequency questionnaire and a lifestyle behavior survey that collected data on health practices. A strong positive correlation was found between total monthly fast food expense and total monthly fast food caloric consumption (r(150) = 0.94, p < 0.05), indicating a significant linear relationship between the two variables. An independent-samples t test comparing the mean monthly fast food restaurant expense males to females found a significant difference between the two groups (t(150) = 4.19, p < 0.05). The more money spent by college students contributed to a higher amount of calories consumed from fast food in a typical month. Future research needs to determine if college students are contributing to the high obesity rate and if limiting fast food restaurants on and around college campuses would help decrease fast food consumption in college students.

Background/Objectives The purpose of this study was to determine if a high fat diet would result in a higher lipolytic rate in subcutaneous adipose tissue than a lower fat diet in sedentary non-lean men. Subjects/Methods Six participants (healthy males: 18-40 yrs old: body mass index 25-37 kg/m2) underwent two weeks on a high-fat or well-balanced diet of similar caloric content (approx. 1600 kcal) in randomized order with a ten-day washout period between diets. Subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue lipolysis was determined over the course of a day using microdialysis after both two-week diet sessions. Results Average interstitial glycerol concentrations (index of lipolysis) as determined using microdialysis were higher following the high-fat diet (210.8 ±27.9 μM) than following a well-balanced diet (175.6 ± 23.3 μM; P = 0.026). There was no difference in adipose tissue microvascular blood flow as determined using the microdialysis ethanol technique. Conclusions These results demonstrate that healthy non-lean men who diet on the high-fat plan have a higher lipolytic rate in subcutaneous abdominal adipose tissue than when they diet on a well-balanced diet plan. This higher rate of lipolysis may result in a higher rate of fat mass loss on the high-fat diet; however, it remains to be determined if this higher lipolytic rate in men on the high-fat diet results in a more rapid net loss of triglyceride from the abdominal adipose depots, or if the higher lipolytic rate is counteracted by an increased rate of lipid storage.

This study was designed to compare the effects of the consumption of one omega-3 (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA)-enriched egg or one conventional egg on serum lipids in physically active adults. A total of 12 adults (mean age 33 ± 7 years, mean body mass index [BMI] 24 ± 3) were recruited, and dietary treatments were randomly assigned. After a 2-week lead-in period (baseline), participants received each 4-week treatment in a crossover arrangement with a 4-week washout period between treatments. Participants completed a 3-day food record at baseline and during each treatment period. Food records were analyzed for carbohydrates, protein, total fat, saturated fat, monounsaturated fatty acids, PUFA, n-3 PUFA, and cholesterol using the Food Processor Nutrition and Fitness (ESHA) software. Blood samples were collected at the end of each treatment period and analyzed for total cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, triglycerides, and n-3 PUFA. Dietary intake of α-linolenic acid (1.196 ± 0.116 g · day −1 ) and docosahexaenoic acid (0.087 ± 0.013 g · day −1 ) and serum α-linolenic acid (10.52 ± 0.581 ng · mL −1 ) were higher during the n-3 PUFA-enriched egg treatment than during the conventional egg treatment (P< 0.05). Serum triglycerides were higher (P< 0.05) with n-3 PUFA-enriched eggs (86.54 ± 5.84 mg · dL −1 ) than with conventional eggs (67.56 ± 5.48 mg · dL −1 ). Daily consumption of one n-3 PUFA-enriched egg resulted in higher serum α-linolenic acid and triglycerides in physically active adults than did daily consumption of one conventional egg. N u t r i t i o N r e s e a r c h 2 4 ( 2 0 0 4 )