THE ADRENALINE RUSH BEHIND CAFFEINE TRENDS
BY AVERY ST. GEORGE ILLUSTRATION COURTESY OF MINJOON LEE
From Alani energy drinks to strawberry matchas, a caffeine addiction has been overtaking social media trends and young people’s spending habits. The rise of trendy caffeine isn’t anything new, however, it is evolving faster than ever.
The early stages of social media saw Starbucks become the leader of trendy caffeine in aesthetic pictures on Tumblr and order suggestion pictures on Instagram. Latte art also became very big during this era, with people posting photos of their cool cappuccinos to share with followers.
In recent years, tea products have made a rise in the United States, as many Americans have been introduced to matcha, a green tea product from China, and chai, a spiced tea from India. Many people have turned to tea drinks, especially young men, who have started to drink matcha or chai if they don’t enjoy the taste of coffee. Shops will try to experiment with new flavor combinations to entice new customers, such as a pumpkin chai or a lavender matcha.
Recently, there's been a competition of new and upcoming cafes. Places like Blank Street in New York City and La La Land in Los Angeles are going viral online for their unique marketing and influencer-approved lattes. These places boast about their unique coffee and matcha recipes that encourage tourists to visit when they’re in the city, and it often leads to lines out the door.
In the energy drink realm, brands like Alani appeal to young girls through sweet flavor combinations like “purple cotton candy” and supposed health benefits. Monster is more popular among men due to marketing from male athletes and musicians and collaborations with extreme sports. Redbull has been a leader in energy drink popularity since the early 2000s due to their broad variety of marketing tactics. Recently, the brand has utilized GoPro dirt bike videos on social media to ambassadors across college campuses. In 2023, there was a 24.2% increase in caffeine exposure to teenagers, possibly due to an increase in the popularity of energy drinks on TikTok. There’s a concern with the consumption of energy drinks in middle and high schoolers because the recommended caffeine dosage for teens is 100 mg or less, and the average energy drink has about 80-160 mg of caffeine.
Soda is also a popular method of caffeine intake for many people, with caffeine levels that are not as high as other options. The dirty soda trend, popularized by the Utah brand Swig, involves mixing flavored syrups and cream with sodas such as Dr. Pepper or Coca-Cola. These drinks are especially popular among Mormons due to church rules that prevent them from drinking coffee.
Gym culture has also produced a new trend and an increase in caffeine consumption for many young weighlifters. Pre-workout is a popular way to get quick energy to achieve the most productivity in the gym and to, in theory, reach the full potential in your workout. It often comes in the form of powder that is mixed with water and can include other components such as citrulline, beta-alanine, and creatine, which are used to enhance muscle strength.
It seems as though every person has their preferred caffeine fix, and as trends continue to alter and change, it will be interesting to see what the next best thing will be.
