“In France, Red bull is different because the taurine coming from the bulls ‘sperm is forbidden”…
This is something widely heard particularly when Red Bull was still forbidden in France and even at its arrival in our country.
Nowadays, Red bull belongs to our common life so fewer questions are asked but who really know what is the taurine? From where does it come? Why Red Bull was forbidden in France because of it? Why next, at its launch in our country, it was replace by another molecule until July 2008?
Few explanations…
The taurine is a major constituent of bile and can be found in the large intestine of humans and many animals. It accounts for approximately 0.1% of total human body weight.
Taurine occurs naturally in food, especially in seafood, meat and eggs.
It has many fundamental biological roles such as detoxification during important physical efforts. It is also essential for cardiovascular functions, development and function of skeletal muscle. It has also been identified as a neurotransmitter.
The chemical formula of Taurine:
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Source: www.wikipedia.com |
However, pharmacological effects of the taurine on organism keep staying not very clear. “No scientific studies realized on this molecule have been published until today” said Jacques Diézi, pharmacological professor at Lausanne University (Switzerland). A review published in 2008 found no documented reports of negative or positive health effects associated with the amount of taurine used in energy drinks, concluding that "The amounts of guarana, taurine, and ginseng found in popular energy drinks are far below the amounts expected to deliver either therapeutic benefits or adverse events".
Indeed, taurine is regularly used as an ingredient in energy drink like Red Bull (be reassured, the taurine contained in this kind of drink is synthetic!). As the consequence, Red Bull had been forbidden a long time in France because of the AFSSA’s (Agence Française de Sécurité Sanitaire des Eléments) doubts concerning the taurine. When the drink was launched in April 2008, another molecula replaced the taurine but in July, as the French State could not prove the taurine‘s noxiousness, it was included in Red Bull ‘s cans like in the original recipe.
Then today, you can find several medicines containing taurine to give you energy...
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Source: www.pharmacie-en-ligne.com |
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Source: www.pharma-z.com |
Even if for the moment nothing has been proved about the negative effects of the taurine, its consumption is unadvised for children, pregnant women and people sick because of their liver or kidney. Besides, persons suffering from cardiac problems or blood pressure should not drink more than 2 cans of drink with taurine per week according to the AFSSA.
Finally, blend alcohol, medicines or drug with taurine can be risky because it speed up absorption of this substances by the body.
To have complementary information about the taurine and the French polemical about it: