Energy Drinks Made From Bull Testicles?

Monster is an energy drink created by the Monster Beverage Company in Corona California. The product was first released to the public in 2002. Monster along with their rival energy drink, Red Bull created a monstrous scene resulting from rumors that the drinks were made from bull testicles.

Taurine is one of the main ingredients in energy drinks. Taurine was the suspected ingredient that got Monster and Red Bull tied up in speculations to begin with.

Taurine is a type of amino acid that gets its name from the Latin term Taurus which means Bull because it was first located in and extracted from the bile and semen of a red bull. It is also found in the human body.

The taurine found in energy drinks is not however a byproduct of bull's testicles, it is a synthetically made substance that is considered to be vegetarian friendly.

The concern that has risen from the use of taurine was not in correlation with its bull sperm but with the effects high levels of the element found in energy drinks and the way it directly reacts with caffeine.

There are 2000 milligrams of taurine in one 16 ounce can of Monster. The human body naturally consumes 100 milligrams through regular nutrition. As you can see that is quite a difference. Taurine is not known to have any life threatening side effects so a recommendation for maximum intake has never been able to be established.

Although, not considered life threatening, there are some very unpleasant side effects to digesting high levels of taurine from energy drinks like Red Bull, Monster, Amp, Rockstar and Lost. Some of the side effects include bizarre behavior, the shakes, anxiety, rage and sensitivity to noise.

The beverage company that created the Monster energy drink, Hansen Natural, chose the name after polling teenage boys. Their plan was to market the energy boosting product to edgy, young teens and young adults. The plan worked, the company's market value is now more than $2.8 billion dollars in a $5.7 billion dollar industry.