"celsius" news and stories

By now, you all know I have an odd fascination with energy drinks. Part of the reason is that my over-stressed, overworked and underslept body body need them -- I think I've had so much coffee in my life already that I've developed a tolerance to the effects of the caffeine in it. Part of the reason is that...nothing. I don't know why else I would want to drink a beverage that almost always tastes like over-sweetened Capri Sun with the bitter chemical aftertaste of say, nail polish remover.

Okay, so that's a little harsh.

It doesn't really taste like Capri Sun.

Now there is a new class of drinks that takes energy to the next level. These drinks claim not to be zero calories, but negative calories, because the chemical formulation actually causes you to, well, burn calories. Granted, energy drinks do the same, since technically, with all that increased "energy," you will run around like a chicken with her head cut off. If you recall, we posted about Enviga last year, which has the same marketing spiel - drink a can of Enviga, you potato del couch, and you will lose weight just sitting there eating Flamin' Hot Cheetos dipped in Blue Cheese Dressing! (I did not try this, but don't think I wouldn't). I tried Enviga. I didn't lose weight.

Celsius is a new energy drink in this category. I tried it. It was...interesting.

Food Business Review Online had an interesting piece on 10 trends to watch for in 2007. I was glad to read that healthful food for kids and local sourcing of ingredients made the list. On a separate note, I was especially happy to learn that nutraceutical beer is in the offing.

Here's the full list:

• Calorie burning beverages: Look for more products like Celsius and Enviga that purport to help shed pounds without exercise.
• Satiety-enhancing foods and drinks: Products that increase the feeling of fullness are just starting to hit the market. Among them is LightFull Satiety Smoothie, which is high in fiber and protein, but has only 70 calories per serving.

Source

We always enjoy hearing about strange new soft drinks here at Slashfood, and the most recent one to show up on my radar is Celsius. Its claim to fame is that its ingredients (which include caffeine) increase your body's metabolism, thereby helping you burn calories. Elite FX, the Delray Beach, Fla. company that makes Celsius, cites a study where the beverage was shown to increase metabolism by 12 percent over a three-hour period. They say you can lose 17 pounds a year, just by drinking a bottle a day for a year. I'm always skeptical of ways to lose weight without exercise, aren't you? Nevertheless, Celsius recently won "best new energy drink" from Beverage Industry Magazine, according to the Boca Raton News.