Study Reveals Energy Drinks Can Cause Heart Problems

Excessive consumption of these can cause heart illnesses

Excessive consumption of these can cause heart illnesses
Excessive consumption of these can cause heart illnesses

The number of people receiving emergency treatment because they consumed energy drinks has spiked  over the past few years. With its ever increasing popularity, and availability, the energy drink industry has seen huge growth as more and more people of all demographics are consuming their products.

A recent survey indicates that from 2007 to 2011, there has been an increase in the number of complaints associated with consumption of the drinks.

The drinks contain high amounts of additives, such as caffeine, taurine, vitamins and sugars. In fact, they have a significantly higher amount of caffeine than a regular cup of coffee, considerably stimulating the central nervous system and cardiovascular system.

Many people aren’t aware of the sheer number of additives inside these drinks, with doctors reporting that they have had patients come in who had drunk as many as three or four energy drinks within an hour – equivalent to almost fifteen cups of coffee.

Health complications associated with energy drink consumption

Excessive energy drink consumption can have some severe medical and behavioral consequences; it’s proving to become a serious public health concern. It commonly causes health complications, such as insomnia, migraine, seizures and heart problems.

Many doctors have said they are seeing an increasing number of patients coming into hospital after consuming an energy drink experiencing rapid and irregular heartbeats and in some cases even heart attacks.

Of all the cases related to energy drinks, 58% involved patients who had consumed just energy drinks, while the other 42 percent involving a drug combination as well.

“The majority of energy drink-related complaints involved either adverse reactions or misuse or abuse of drugs; other reasons are not presented because they represent less than 5 percent of complaints. In each year from 2007 to 2011, complaints involving adverse reactions were about twice as commonly reported as visits involving misuse or abuse.” The report noted

Men accounted for two thirds of the energy drink related ED visits. Perhaps this is because men are much more likely to buy energy drinks than women, the authors wrote. However, complaints for both men and women doubled over the past four years (7,000 to 15,000 and 3,000 and 6,000), indicating a similar trend in both sexes.

In 2004, French authorities banned the sale of Red Bull, an energy drink.

The marketing of these drinks makes them more appealing to a younger population. The health complications associated with young people consuming energy drinks was explored in a study published in Pediatrics. The researchers fround that energy drinks may be unsafe for some kids, especially those with seizures, heart abnormalities, diabetes or mood and behavior disorders.

“The occurrence of energy drink-related ED visits among adolescents and young adults shows that these vulnerable populations experience negative health events after consuming energy drinks. Energy drinks can also be problematic among young adults, especially college students, when used in combination with alcohol.” The report added.

“Health professionals can discourage use of energy drinks by explaining that perceived health benefits are largely due to marketing techniques rather than scientific evidence. Because of the drinks’ widespread use, it may be beneficial for ED staff to inquire about use of energy drinks when assessing each patient’s use of medications or other drugs.

Last fall, 18 people died because of an energy-drink-consumption problem, which triggered a lot of pressure on the FDA to investigate whether these beverages are causing serious damage to the general public. They Agency issued a statement shortly afterwards confirming that they will conduct a full review of energy drinks and their impact on public health later this year.

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