Red Bull

I'm waiting for D at his office, and noticed that his employee/friend MF left an empty can of Red Bull in his cube. Here are the (mostly) scary ingredients:

Carbonated water, sucrose, glucose, sodium citrate, taurine (this is derived from a bull in some way), glucuronolactone, caffeine, inositol, niacinamide, calcium-pantothenate, pryidoxine HCL, vitamin B12, natural and artificial flavors, colors.

I read once that "natural and artificial flavors" are proprietary, meaning that the manufacturer doesn't have to tell you exactly what they are.

I've never taken Red Bull, but I know that Britney used to blame her more scantily-clad shots on it ("I would never have done that, but I drank like, 10 cans of Red Bull" -- an excuse she is no longer using), and that one of D's former employees drank a Red Bull martini or something like that, and promptly passed out on the floor.

In other news, I taught a regular class yesterday and also subbed. I sub there fairly often -- enough for me to know a lot about the receptionist. She used to be a stripper, and has myriad health complaints:

thyroid (underactive)
tooth (needs a root canal)
ankle (sprained and makes cracking sounds)
breasts (implants need to be taken out and replaced with smaller ones; they're floating around and almost poking out)

I think she is getting her tooth fixed soon.

Comments

Irene said…
What a coincidence! My husband is beside me taking a swig of Red Bull right at this moment. He said he needs it to be able to pull off an all-nighter at our studio.

Now excuse me while I read those ingredients out to him so he knows what strange stuff is being ingested into his system...
Roxanne said…
Sounds like she needs more help than just a tooth repair.
Anonymous said…
I've always wondered about Red Bull. It seemed so mysterious!

Now that the mystery is revealed (except for the still-mysterious natural and artificial flavors), I'm pretty sure I'll never try it.

Vitamin B12 is good, right? Is that the only redeeming ingredient?
Anonymous said…
One of the interesting things I've learned about diabetes is that if you have it, you should never drink something like red bull, unless you have a really low blood sugar and want your blood sugar level to spike up. For those of us whose bodies still produce insulin, I imagine our pancreas has to work pretty hard to keep up with "like, 10 cans", as Brittney would say.
Bearette said…
rox - it's a start!

liz - yes, b12 is good for you :) it actually has niacin too (i guess from the niacinamide). i think niacin is good too.
Anonymous said…
I'm curious about the receptionist you mentioned. You said she was a stripper in the same sentence - are the health complaints connected?
Anonymous said…
I imagine stripping is hard on one's ankles.

I've only tried a sip of Red bull, and it was like liquified Sweet Tarts. I like Sweet Tarts, but not in liquid form. I'll just stick to water.
verniciousknids said…
In a nightclub on top of a mountain in Switzerland I had one vodka and Red Bull...and no more as it practically knocked me out! It must have been the taurine ;)
Bearette said…
A - well, she got the implants for her job. otherwise, they're not connected (i don't think).

kitkat - interesting! i never knew it was that sweet. i think the ankle injury was actually from an aerobics class recently.

vk - that sounds picturesque!

irene - i wonder if he'll stop drinking it now ;)
This suzy said…
You couldn't pay me enough to drink Red Bull, even if my blood sugar was low. That's why I carry candy in my purse. lol
Caro said…
Did you know that if you're a stripper, you can deduct health club fees, cosmetics and probably implants too?

It's all necessary stuff for the job!
Bearette said…
Hee. All those unsuspected benefits...and you know a lot about them ;)
Caro said…
Yes I do.

Too bad the coke habit wasn't deductible.

That was maintenance too.
Anonymous said…
This MF sounds like a wuss. Tell him to get a real drink.
--Lobo
Anonymous said…
ya know, just because a few people have had bed expieriences related to Red Bull, doesn't make it all bad. i personally LOVE the stuff. and it really can't hurt you if you drink them appropriatley. only use them if you are going to need to stay awake for a while or are doing something that involves a lot of energy. drinking "like ten of them" is not a good idea though...

just somewthing to think about.

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