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elfsI was buying flavored syrups for home the other day, and as I went down the aisle one of the things I saw was Boosta-Shot, a "flavor neutral energy mix" to be added to italian sodas and other drinks.
The nutrition facts for the bottle says it has about 400mg of "guarana extract," which, if the extract is the standardized stuff available in the United States, is 22% caffeine, so a single serving (3/4 oz) has about 88mg of caffeine in it. (Some unscrupulous dealers claim it is "caffeine free,", but the bottle itself says only "all natural ingredients" and "no added caffeine.") A full ounce has 117mg, and a single pump from your average syrup pump about 39mg.
(All of these are approximate, but you can do the math yourself. Also, I anticipate that compositional standardization is done by moles, which could well throw the calculations way off, but I doubt it.)
Boosta-shot is sold in 1-liter bottles. That's 3900mg of caffeine. That's, um, a little less than twice the LD50.
The FAQ for Boosta-Shot reads:
I predict that sometime in the next year some kid will die of an overdose, there will be a popular panic over this stuff, there will be a media storm dominating the news cycle for about 96 hours, and it'll get pulled from the shelves.
The nutrition facts for the bottle says it has about 400mg of "guarana extract," which, if the extract is the standardized stuff available in the United States, is 22% caffeine, so a single serving (3/4 oz) has about 88mg of caffeine in it. (Some unscrupulous dealers claim it is "caffeine free,", but the bottle itself says only "all natural ingredients" and "no added caffeine.") A full ounce has 117mg, and a single pump from your average syrup pump about 39mg.
(All of these are approximate, but you can do the math yourself. Also, I anticipate that compositional standardization is done by moles, which could well throw the calculations way off, but I doubt it.)
Boosta-shot is sold in 1-liter bottles. That's 3900mg of caffeine. That's, um, a little less than twice the LD50.
The FAQ for Boosta-Shot reads:
Is Boosta-Shot FDA approved? Does it need to be?[SIC] Misspellings ("to much" and "matabolism") are indeed in the original.
Boosta-Shot™ is not a regulated product. The FDA does not require Boosta-Shot™ to be reviewed. All ingredients used in the making of Boosta-Shot™ however are FDA approved products.
What will happen to me if I have too much? What is too much?
Suggested serving size in 3/4oz. Like any other energy stimulant, we caution you to use and drink responsibly. To much depends on many factors, such as matabolism rate, body weight, age, etc. Start low and go slow.
I predict that sometime in the next year some kid will die of an overdose, there will be a popular panic over this stuff, there will be a media storm dominating the news cycle for about 96 hours, and it'll get pulled from the shelves.
Caffeine LD50
Date: 2010-05-14 08:26 am (UTC)Caffeine LD50 is 192mg/kg (in rats, anyway). So for an adult, say 80kg, LD50 is 15360mg - four times the amount in that 1-litre bottle.
It's still rather more than I'd want to risk!