Energy Drinks Make Your Clothes Fall Off

In case you needed another reason to stay away from energy drinks (we'd think higher blood pressure, cardiovascular risk, rotting teeth, and even the risk of death would be enough), there's one more reason: those who drink energy drinks frequently engage in some pretty risky business. 

Researcher Kathleen Miller studied nearly 800 undergraduate students, and found that those who drank six or more energy drinks per month were more likely to engage in unprotected sex, get in street fights, abuse prescription drugs, and smoke cigarettes. It's what they call "toxic jock syndrome," characterized by hyper-masculunity and well, risky behaviors. 

It's interesting to note who the most frequent drinkers of energy drinks are (especially because they are targeted to the 18 to 25 age range, notes Miller): 46 percent of the males studied had one or more energy drink compared to their female counterparts, at 31 percent. And only 25 percent of African-American participants drank energy drinks regularly, compared to 40 percent of their white peers. 

What's more dangerous, says Miller, is that most participants said they regularly mixed energy drinks with alcoholic drinks. It's important to note, however, that energy drinks not necessarily the cause of stupid behaviors; more so, excessive consumption is a red flag. "Although energy drink consumption can be used to predict other problem behaviors, it does not necessarily follow that drinking these substances is a gateway to more serious health-compromising activities," Miller said in a press release. "It is entirely possible that a common factor, such as a sensation-seeking personality or involvement in risk-oriented peer sub-cultures, contributes to both."