Caffeine has a half-life in the human body of approximately 4-6 hours. So this means that the "5 hours" in 5hr Energy is just the amount of time it takes for your body to process half the caffeine away.

Therefore drinking half of a 5hr Energy would be 0 hours of the advertised level of energy. At best it would be like drinking a 5hr Energy and then immediately fast-forwarding 5 hours

[–] [email protected] 21 points 5 months ago (1 children)

So 5 hours of half-assed energy

[–] neatchee 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Not even. I can't speak for others but the effects of 5hr Energy pretty much disappear after those 5 hours are up. Half the caffeine dose isn't enough to do much of anything, at least for me. So it's essentially a waste. I'm sure it depends on things like BMI but to get 5hrs of half-assed energy you'd need to consume 3/4ths of a dose, which would leave you with roughly half the experience of a 5hr Energy (that is, half the difference between the caffeine in your system immediately after drinking one dose and 5hrs after drinking one)

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 months ago

Except you've already had 5 hours of your body metabolizing caffeine, so the effects of the remaining half a dose after 5 hours aren't nearly the same as if you took that half a dose after a night's sleep and not having had any. Your body becomes accustomed to it. That's how all drugs work. You can take 6 grams of mushrooms and it'll definitely still be in your system after 6 hours, but the effects won't be the same as taking 3 grams straight up, it will have almost entirely worn off despite the residual psilocybin in your body.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 5 months ago

It took me until your comment to realise I had skimmed over the word "half" in the OP. Now this whole thing makes sense.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 months ago (1 children)

I’ve never taken a 5hr energy. Are they really just caffeine shots?

[–] dejected_warp_core 15 points 5 months ago

Kinda. From the CVS website:

Vitamin B6, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B3 (Niacin), Citicoline, Tyrosine, Phenylalanine, Taurine, Malic Acid, Glucuronolactone, Caffeine. Other Ingredients: Purified Water; Natural and Artificial Flavors; Sucralose; Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Benzoate and EDTA.

So, Caffeine for sure. But the b-complex, and Taurine will also give you a boost, for entirely different reasons. Half this stuff is psuedo-scientific at best, and the rest just filler.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

5 hour energy drinks are not just caffeine, which is what sets them apart from other energy drinks. Vitamin B12 and shit like that.

[–] neatchee 2 points 5 months ago

As far as I'm aware, unless you're already B12 deficient, the B12 in 5hr Energy doesn't do much of anything because it already hangs around in your blood stream for a long, long time. Half life on B12 in the body is something like 6 days and excess is even stored in the liver instead of excreted.

Can't speak to the other ingredients but I'd guess it's all the same: either it's already available in abundance if you're eating a decent diet, or the half life is close to that of caffeine