Energy drink Celsius is among the most consumed drinks at the school yet students have acknowledged it comes with negative side effects. In the past year, 149 cans have been sold. Photo by Alexis Jackson
By Zoie Carlile
Late nights.
Early mornings.
Tired eyes.
This is a reality for students like senior Alessia Cordray and the solution is often cracking open a can of Celsius.
“On average, I get a celsius every day,” Cordray said. “It just helps me stay focused, especially because this year, all of my difficult classes are in the morning, so it just helps me stay awake.”
Celsius is an energy drink that was originally designed to accelerate metabolism, burn body fat and provide essential energy. For the last few years, Celsius has been available in vending machines at school.
Cordray has been drinking Celsius since her junior year and the habit has only grown stronger now that she is a senior.
“It tasted good and everyone really liked them,” Cordray said. “I mean it has so much caffeine [in it], so it definitely works.”
Senior Ellie Williamson, a Belle, also drinks Celsius to get a boost of caffeine at school. Her main reason is because of the early practices that are required for Belles.
“I have to [get] up really early and I'm normally [up] late doing homework,” Williamson said. “I need energy in the morning and I don't like coffee, so [Celsius is] better.”
Although Celsius is arguably the most popular way to stay energized, the school has been providing other caffeinated products like Awake bars and coffee from Scottie Joes for years.
“When I arrived in 1991, we had both Dr. Pepper and Coke vending machines,” cafeteria manager Joan Bayes said. “So, yes, we have been selling caffeinated products in the vending machines [since] ‘91.”
According to Bayes, profits from products sold at the school, including the newer addition of more highly caffeinated products, have been used to help fund various activities over the years.
“Over the last 30 years I've been here, we've generated over $3 million worth of retained earnings to the PTA, which then is gifted to the school,” Bayes said. “[This is] just from the combination of lunch sales and vending machine [sales].”
Although vending machine sales have certainly increased over the years, a recent sales report from Snack N Pop Vending, the school’s vending machine supplier, shows that in the past year only 149 cans of Celsius have been sold. There are roughly 2,020 students at the school.\
"I can definitely tell when I don't have [caffeine]. I kind of crave caffeine whenever I don't have it, which is definitely negative."
Bayes attributes this to the fact that while it is convenient to have the drinks sold in school, the majority of students prefer to bring their Celsius from home.
Cordray is one of the students who believes buying Celsius from the school vending machine is a more convenient option, albeit a not very healthy one.
“I do drink it, [but] it's definitely not healthy because 200 milligrams is a lot of caffeine to consume and I have a lot of friends who get very anxious from it,” Cordray said. “But it's also something that people are already going to be drinking, so it's nice to have it at school and be easy to buy right then and there.”
Although grabbing a can of Celsius or an Awake bar from the cafeteria can be an easy and effective way for students like Cordray to stay awake in their classes, it can often come with consequences such as increased anxiety, dizziness and a quickened heart rate.
“When I buy a Celsius, it takes me from first period to fourth or fifth to finish it,” Cordray said. “I'm just trying to battle [anxiety] while drinking it, so I try to drink it as slowly as I can.”
In some cases, drinking caffeine can also cause a dependency, meaning that people develop a tolerance to it.
“I can definitely tell when I don't have [caffeine],” Williamson said. “I kind of crave caffeine whenever I don't have it, which is definitely negative.”
Licensed Professional Counselor Elizabeth Scrivner agrees that consuming caffeine can be detrimental to one’s health.
“I think that the major [appeal] is the boost of energy, but then after that, you’re going to have a crash,” Scrivner said. “Another one that I always think of is dehydration [because caffeine is] not hydrating.”
Scrivner believes that there are four main factors that people, especially high school students, need to implement into their routine to make them less reliant on caffeine to stay awake. They include water, sleep, healthy food and exercise.
"I feel like I know my own body [and] I know if I shouldn't have caffeine because I'm already really anxious. "
“[If] you didn't get sleep the night before, because you're up studying, [then] you're wanting to get a boost so you can focus,” Scrivner said. “That's a typical thing to do, but you're going to crash after that because you're tired.”
Scrivner says dehydration is extremely prevalent yet most people still struggle to reach for water instead of chemical-fueled, caffeinated drinks.
“A lot of people walk around really dehydrated,” Scrivner said. “When we're dehydrated, sometimes we don't know if we're tired, hungry or sleepy. Dehydration can just cause those feelings [whereas] when you're having a lot of water, that can help with the things that people may try to resort to [caffeinated] drinks for.”
With these potential negative side effects in mind, Williamson believes that students are old enough to make their own decisions regarding what caffeinated products they consume.
“I feel like I know my own body [and] I know if I shouldn't have caffeine because I'm already really anxious,” Williamson said. “I think having the option for people who know how to control it is nice.”
Williamson says that at the end of the day it’s important to be mindful about what we are putting in our bodies.
“I think it's more about self responsibility rather than the school's responsibility,” she said.