Puff Your Way To A Caffeine Boost

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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – After oil, coffee is the second most valuable commodity in the world. And here in the U-S statistics show that we are a caffeine nation. More than 50 percent of Americans drink coffee everyday - three to four cups each -- more than 330 million cups a day and counting.

But would you be willing to exchange a sip for a puff?

A new device on the market promises to deliver caffeine high in form of vapor

Eagle Energy Vapor is one of many caffeine inhalers that has hit the market in the past few years. At $8.99 each, the disposable inhaler, lasts for about 500 puffs and promised a quick pick-me-up.

CBS 4 investigators put it to an unscientific test. Jonathan Feltnor a caffeine lover wasted no time. Before we could finish telling him about the product he had taken his first puff.

He reported, "You can feel it already just off two - you feel a little head rush - I like it - I try it."

We wanted to know, would he replace sip for a puff?

He said he would. "Because that's full of sugar and calories and this is just caffeinated air."

Each inhaler contains only 2 milligrams of caffeine - compared with about 150 milligrams in most 12 ounce cups of coffee.

Our next tester was a waitress and a smoker.

Yamile Rodriquez said it tasted fruity but that she didn't feel the caffeine. "Maybe because I had coffee already?"

But, less than two minutes later, she was jittery, sweaty and alert! Even so she said, "I'll never switch coffee for this. I have to drink my coffee every day."

Our third subject, Justin Bishop, a chef who is a self-proclaim caffeine addict and smoker took several puffs but reported feeling nothing at all.

Most everyone who saw the product and tested it loved the convenience factor. But, at what price?

Although the company says their product is safe, it is not FDA approved and its long term health effects are unknown.

Dr. Sandra Chaparro, a Cardiologist at U Health, says it's not just the caffeine that consumers inhale.

"There are a lot of products that you have to mix to make sure it gets absorbed. We don't know what the other products are going to do."

The active ingredients are Guarana, Taurine, Vanilla, and Ginseng.

Dr. Chaporra says, "Usually when you inhale something it goes directly into the circulation inside the nose so it has a direct effect on the system of that person - we don't know the long term what are the side effects of those chemical compounds."

The Company says that the flavors used in Eagle Energy products are safe and meet Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association of the United States (FEMA) standards. But FEMA has explicitly said that its approval for flavors is only for ingestion and that its expert panel does not consider other methods of consumption.

So, knowing the risks, just how many of you will give up a sip coffee for a puff?

One of our testers said, "I have a little bit of energy - after those two - but it's still that addiction of needing that cup."

The Eagle Energy Vapor are sold only online and are currently in negotiations to get into grocery stores. They do have warning labels on them. The company says it has conducted its own safety studies and the ingredients are safe but as with anything new in the market; buyer beware.