The product was created by Nick Anderson, the 29-year-old entrepreneur behind the company Legal Lean. Marketed as a safer, legal version of codeine cough syrup (otherwise known as “lean” or “purple drank”), Legal Lean was designed as a stress reliever to “relax the mind.”

Coko Loko, however, serves an entirely different function. Along with cacao powder, the product contains gingko bilboa, taurine and guarana — ingredients commonly found in energy drinks like Red Bull and Monster. The result is a sharp energy kick that lasts 30 minutes to an hour, triggering an endorphin rush without the side effects of a sugar crash.