Clare O'Connor profiles Manoj Bhargava, creator of the 5-Hour Energy drink, who spent his 20s traveling to Indian monasteries:
Bhargava claims he spent those 12 years trying to master one technique: the stilling of the mind, often through meditation. He still considers himself a member of the Hanslok order and spends an hour a day in his Farmington Hills basement in contemplative silence. … Bhargava takes a shot of his creation every morning and another before his thrice-weekly tennis game. He shakes his head at the suggestion that taking shots infused with caffeine is at odds with his quest for inner stillness. “5-Hour Energy is not an energy drink, it’s a focus drink,” he says, turning one of the pomegranate-flavor bottles around in his hands. “But we can’t say that. The FDA doesn’t like the word ‘focus.’ I have no idea why.”
In a separate story, O'Connor examines the ingredients:
Inside the bottle: 4 calories, zero sugar, “a blend of B-vitamins, amino acids and nutrients,” and “about as much caffeine as a cup of premium coffee,” according to 5-Hour’s website. … A 2010 test by independent reviewer ConsumerLab.com found vitamin levels thousands of times higher than recommended daily allowances and 207mg of caffeine—a massive amount per ounce, but less than the 260mg in a Starbucks tall coffee.
The Dish 