If you’re looking for a pre-workout energy drink that’ll give you an energy boost to power throughout your day, the C4 Energy drink is definitely worth trying!
In brief, C4 Energy is a sugar-free and calorie-free energy drink that contains 200mg of caffeine and B-vitamins to help give you an energy boost. However, that amount of caffeine may not work well for you if you’re sensitive to caffeine.
If you want to know more about the ingredients and nutritional facts of a C4 Energy Drink, just read up.
Contents
Nutrition Facts Of C4 Energy Drink
For comparison, have a quick look at the nutritional values of all the series under C4 Energy Drink:
| Standard Values | C4 “Original” Carbonated (16 fl.oz) | C4 “Smart Energy” Carbonated (16 fl.oz) | C4 “Ultimate” Carbonated (16 fl.oz) | C4 “Energy Natural Zero” Carbonated (12 fl.oz) |
| Energy | 0 calories | 0 calories | 0 calories | 0 calories |
| Protein | 0g | 0g | Unspecified | 0g |
| Fat (Of Which Saturated) | 0g (0g) | 0g (0g) | 0g (0g) | 0g (0g) |
| Carbohydrate (Of which Sugars) | 0g (0g) | 0g (0g) | 0g (0g) | 0g (0g) |
| Sodium | Unspecified | 0mg | Unspecified | Unspecified |
| Caffeine | 200mg | 200mg | 300mg | 120mg |
| Vitamin B3 (Niacin) | 30mg | 30mg | 60mg | – |
| Vitamin B6 | – | – | 1mg | – |
| Vitamin B9 | – | – | 500μg | – |
| Vitamin B12 | 6μg | 6μg | 70μg | – |
| Potassium | 85mg | – | 110mg | – |
Calorie Content Of C4 Energy Drink
There are no calories present in any of the C4 Energy drinks, definitely one of the healthier drinks available in the market.
A standard 16 fl.oz can of Monster Energy contains 210 calories, and Red Bull has 110 calories in each 8.4 fl.oz serving, so I think having C4 Energy will help maintain your health.
The recommended daily calorie intake for healthy adults is around 2,000 calories to 2,500 calories, but this depends on your age, gender and overall lifestyle, of course.
So if you’re someone who’s trying to lose a few pounds or not interested in adding any extra calories to your diet, C4 Energy may be the right choice for you. I think it’ll make a great go-to energy drink if you have a more sedentary lifestyle.
Considering that this drink is calorie-free, you’ll be getting most of the energy boost from the caffeine content itself.
On that note, it’s best to remember that your body can’t depend on energy drinks alone. You should always have a properly balanced meal to give your body the nutrients it needs.
Ingredients Of C4 Energy Drink
In general, C4 Energy Drink has its very own proprietary blend, consisting of a 6.73g mixture of the following ingredients:
- Citrulline Malate
- CamoSyn® Beta-Alanine
- BetaPower® Betaine Anhydrous
- N-Acetyl-L-Tyrosine
- Caffeine Anhydrous
The C4 Original Carbonated (16 fl.oz) is made of 6.73g of Explosive Performance Energy Blend that contains:
- Caffeine anhydrous (200mg)
- CarnoSyn Beta-alanine
- Beta power Betaine Anhydrous
- N-acetyl-l-tyrosine
- Citrulline malate
The drink also has some quantities of these ingredients:
- Carbonated water
- Citric Acid
- Natural flavors
- Artificial flavors
- Potassium sorbate
- Sucralose
- Acesulfame potassium
Does C4 Energy Drink Have Sugar?
The good news about the C4 Energy drink is that it doesn’t contain any sugar. It’s completely sugar-free.
For reference, the American Heart Association (AHA) sets the daily maximum sugar intake of 25g of sugar for women and 36g of sugar for men.
So with a sugar-free energy drink like C4 Energy, you don’t have to worry about it taking up any of your overall sugar intakes for the day.
Although sugar is a great ingredient that adds sweetness to your favorite food and drinks, overconsumption can trigger:
- Acne
- Weight gain
- Heart disease
- Diabetes
- Cancer
- Depression
Thus, I would highly recommend trying out C4 Energy as it gives you a kick of energy without causing any potential health issues.
How Much Caffeine Is In C4 Energy Drink?
While C4 Energy drink is completely sugar and calorie-free, a 16 fl.oz can of the original version contains 200mg of caffeine.
I’ve included all the caffeine content for each series under the C4 Energy in the table below:
| C4 Variant | Caffeine content |
| Original (16 fl.oz) | 200mg |
| Smart Energy (16 fl.oz) | 200mg |
| Ultimate (16 fl.oz) | 300mg |
| Natural Zero (12 fl.oz) | 120mg |
As you can see, the range of caffeine in each series of C4 Energy Drink goes from 120mg to 300mg of caffeine. The C4 Original falls just right in the middle of the standard with 200mg of caffeine in each serving.
If you’re an avid caffeine drinker, 200mg of caffeine may be on par with what your body can handle. There’s no doubt you’ll be getting a quick energy boost from just one can of this drink.
It’s pretty expected that the C4 Energy drink contains quite a hefty amount of caffeine, considering it doesn’t have any sugar nor calories. So, its 200mg of caffeine content will surely help enhance your mental and physical performance.
However, I wouldn’t recommend going for multiple cans of this energy drink in one day due to the FDA‘s maximum daily limit of 400mg of caffeine for healthy adults.
That said, if you’re regularly chugging down on multiple cans of this highly caffeinated drink, you’ll be risking various health issues such as:
- Restlessness
- Jittery feeling
- Insomnia
- Headaches
- Dizziness
- Rapid
- Palpitations
- Dehydration
- Anxiety
- Dependency
To avoid potentially harming your health, you should always practice self-control when drinking caffeine, as it’s easy to go over the daily limit.
I also wouldn’t recommend the C4 Energy drink if you’re sensitive to caffeine, as 200mg in a single can is quite a hefty amount and may leave you with nasty side effects.
If you want to learn more about the health risks associated with caffeinated energy drinks, you may watch this video:
B Vitamin Content Of C4 Energy Drink
There are three types of B vitamins present in each C4 Energy drinks. They are vitamin B3, B6 and B12.
B-group vitamins play an essential role in ensuring your body functions properly, and they give a healthy energy boost.
Have a look at the table below consisting of the purpose and tolerable intake of the B vitamins in C4 Energy drinks:
| Types of B Vitamins | Purpose | Tolerable Upper Intake Level |
| Vitamin B3 (niacin) | Stabilizes energy and promotes good skin | 35mg |
| Vitamin B6 | Energy storing from protein and carbs as well as the formation of red blood cells | 100mg |
| Vitamin B12 | Breaks down energy from food, structures red blood cells and stabilize the nervous system. | – |
For a more detailed explanation, you can head on over to Harvard‘s article on the topic.
Are There Any Artificial Sweeteners in C4 Energy Drink?
Due to the sugar-free nature of the C4 Energy drink, you can find artificial sweeteners, like Sucralose and Acesulfame potassium, in this drink that helps give sweetness flavor to it.
Sucralose is a popular artificial sweetener used to substitute regular sugar. It goes through a chemical process to tweak the chemical structure of sugar to make it 600 times sweeter while calorie-free.
Acesulfame Potassium (Ace-K) is also a calorie-free artificial sweetener found in several sodas, shakes, drink mixes, frozen dessert, and baked goods. It offers a slight bitter after-taste that’s blended with other artificial sweeteners like Sucralose (Splenda) and aspartame (Equal).
Although both of these artificial sweeteners are approved by the FDA, there’s an ongoing debate on whether or not they pose a threat to your health.
According to this study, overconsumption of sucralose may lead to possibilities of degenerative disease. It’s also important to note that the relation between sucralose and weight loss is still inconclusive.
To add on, consuming too much Ace-K may lead to health problems like headaches, nausea, and fatigue because it contains a chemical called carcinogen methylene chloride.
That said, C4 Energy also contains stevia leaf extract, which is a derivative of the mixture of highly refined stevia leaf extract and other sweeteners, namely dextrose.
While all these sweeteners are usually marketed to be healthier due to their zero-calorie content, we still don’t know their long-term effects.
However, I believe that as long as you consume C4 Energy moderately and keep your overall health in check, you shouldn’t worry too much.
What Are The Health Risks Of C4 Energy Drink?
While C4 Energy is indeed healthier than most energy drinks as it contains zero calories and sugar, its caffeine content of 200mg per 16 fl.oz serving may take a toll on your health, especially if consumed excessively.
Even if you have a high caffeine metabolism, regularly consuming too much caffeine can lead you to become dependent on it.
Caffeine dependence happens when you can’t function without caffeine. You unconsciously develop a habit of consuming caffeine every time you want to start working.
I always try to keep my daily caffeine limit to a maximum of 100mg of caffeine as going over the limit can make me feel jittery and leave me with a migraine.
Although the four variants of C4 Energy Drinks are below the daily caffeine limit, it’s still best to consume them moderately. You wouldn’t want to risk the side effects of caffeinated energy drinks, which includes:
- Risk-taking behaviors
- Insomnia
- Dehydration
- Depression
- Anxiety
Therefore, always make sure to drink C4 Energy moderately for the sake of your health. My advice is to stick to a maximum of two cans per day, and if your caffeine tolerance is lower, you can opt for C4 Natural Zero.
How Long Does C4 Energy Drink Last?
The effects of caffeine in C4 Energy depends on your tolerance towards this ingredient.
Caffeine’s half-life is around five to six hours, which means that it will stay in your system this long before your bloodstream will slowly decrease its effects. So you’ll still have around 100mg of caffeine left in your body even after half a day of consuming C4 Energy.
It’ll take almost 12 hours to completely flush out caffeine in your system.
If you’re someone with high caffeine tolerance, you’ll most likely be able to handle C4 Energy. However, if you are like me, who prefers smaller amounts of caffeine, C4 might be a little overwhelming for you.
Final Verdict
In my opinion, C4 Energy makes a great choice for an energy drink as it doesn’t contain much health concerning amounts of ingredients. Although, you may want to be cautious of its high caffeine content.
Despite its special ingredients and vitamins that are beneficial for your health, a 16 fl.oz can of C4 Energy also contains 200mg of caffeine. This amount can be damaging for your health if you’re not careful of your intake.
With that much caffeine in a single can, I would recommend drinking C4 Energy only during high-intensity workouts or mentally demanding situations.
You can also try its Natural Zero version if you don’t want to risk the side effects of overconsuming caffeine as it only has 120mg of caffeine per 12 fl.oz can.
That said, I hope you find this article helpful and enjoy your C4 Energy.