Throughout my life, I have always wanted to like coffee. I have tried the hand-crafted drink too many times to count and every single time, I like it even less.  Now energy drinks, I always knew I could get behind. However, I always had my mom’s voice in the back of my head. “Tori, try to stay away from energy drinks, you can get through the day without one. You don’t want to be addicted to caffeine.”

When I came to college, everything changed. Staying up until 3 a.m. with my roommates watching Frozen II on a Tuesday night was something I only regretted because of my morning class the next day. Sleep is something college students neglect.

“Whenever I pull an all-nighter, grabbing an energy drink from my mini-fridge after I get out of bed is an essential part of my day,” FGCU freshman Savannah Mock said.

Between rushing out the door trying to leave 40 minutes before my class to maybe get a seat on the shuttle, grabbing an energy drink in the lobby of Eagle Hall or SOVI dining for extra energy is convenient at best.

When exam time rolls around, the combination of stress and lack of sleep from studying all night is what drives students to find an energy drink. We feel as though we cannot get through our day without one.

Everywhere we turn, vending machines line the lobbies of each hall, all encasing a plethora of energy drinks. Redbull, Bang, Monster, Mountain Dew Kickstarts, and don’t forget the Pepsi products that also contain caffeine. The school programs even give out Redbulls during events for free which provides easy access to them.

“Bang is definitely my favorite energy drink,” FGCU junior Lindsey Smith said. “They give me more energy throughout the day and help me by giving me more motivation to complete assignments when I have breaks in-between classes instead of wanting to take a nap.”

The issue is, energy drinks do not boost our energy any better than a cup of coffee does. The dangers of energy drinks are real. They can increase blood pressure and stress hormones could put a healthy teen at risk for heart damage. They can also cause the infamous energy crash that causes fatigue.

“I don’t usually drink energy drinks because they give me too much energy at once and make me crash, but I will drink a sugary coffee to get me through the day,” FGCU freshman Paige Beauchamp said.

College students have a complicated relationship with energy drinks. They help us get through the day running on five hours of sleep, but they also make us crash after our 1:30 p.m. class. That being said, that’s still not going to stop most energy drink, consumers.