Concerns raised over stimulant in energy drinks

Energy drinks are big business but as the market grows, so do concerns about what’s actually in these drinks - and what these ingredients might be doing to our bodies.

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Many energy drinks contain some combination of three familiar stimulants: caffeine; guarana, an Amazonian plant rich in caffeine; and taurine, a naturally occurring amino acid found in scallops, mussels, turkey and chicken.

Taurine, in particular, has drawn both hype and hope. It is credited with performance-enhancing properties and potential health benefits. But new research is raising important questions about how it behaves in the body - and when it might do more harm than good.

In May 2025, a study published in Nature sparked headlines and unease in equal measure. It found that taurine may fuel the progression of leukaemia, a group of blood cancers that begin in the bone marrow.