Fuel or Fix? The Rise of Energy Drinks

Writer: Katie Chan
Editor: Quinn Smith

Let’s be honest: a lot of teens are running on low battery, all the time. Early school wake ups, homework, sports, jobs, clubs, and family responsibilities pile up fast. Energy drinks step in with a simple promise: you don’t need to change your life; just open a can. This mentality helps explain why in 2024 the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stated that 30%–50% of adolescents reported that they consume energy drinks. Many adolescents use energy drinks specifically to cope with sleep deprivation and academic or athletic demands.

Over time, this turns into a habit loop. If someone always drinks an energy drink before a test or practice, their brain starts linking the can with performance. It becomes part of the routine rather than just a source of caffeine. On top of that, brands don’t just sell energy–they sell identity. Energy drinks are associated with athletic, edgy, fearless, or “main character” energy, which hits harder when teens feel stressed or insecure.

Marketing plays a huge role in this. Energy drink promotion relies heavily on social media tactics like influencer partnerships, celebrity endorsements, interactive posts, and teen-focused themes such as gaming, sports, and pop culture. This works because teens aren’t watching traditional commercials, they’re scrolling. In a study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, researchers analyzed 197 TikToks related to energy drinks with a combined 70+ million views and found that 67% portrayed energy drinks positively, 46% showed consumption, and 22% featured children or adolescents. Because these videos are highly engaging and framed as a small practice in everyday life, energy drinks appear less like advertised products and more like a daily routine. When so many people are drinking them on screen, the normalization allows them to be integrated into youth culture.

Even the language is tailored to school life: focus, fuel, power, boost, ultra. The drink is framed less like a beverage and more like a study tool. For a teen who feels behind or anxious about grades, words like “boost” carry emotional weight. It feels like hope in a can. Still, many teens admit that there are downsides: feeling shaky or anxious, crashing later in the day, or realizing they’re drinking them out of habit rather than real need. 

Energy drinks are everywhere in schools, and it’s not just because students are tired.
It’s because tired students are easy to sell to.

References

Ayalde, J., Ta, D., Adesanya, O., Mandzufas, J., Lombardi, K., & Trapp, G. (2023, April). Awake and alert: Examining the portrayal of energy drinks on Tiktok. The Journal of adolescent 

health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine. 

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36529617/The Buzz on Energy Drinks. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2024, July 22). 

https://www.cdc.gov/school-nutrition/energy-drinks/index.html