I dedicate this post to those unfortunate youngsters who have lost their lives by consuming Energy Drinks. Losing life is the worst that can happen, but there are many others who are grappling with the after effects such as changes to their personality, panic attacks, depressive behaviour, strokes and paralysis besides a host of other issues.
I also take this opportunity to request the reader to share this information with the younger audience who are prone to taking Energy drinks. The reason as to why many youngsters and adolescents are drinks like Red Bull, Monster, Tzinga etc, is because they are under the impression that these Energy drinks are healthy alternatives to cola and other sugary drinks.
A couple of weeks ago, I received a call from a Prehealing participant who was distraught over her brothers untimely demise. He was young, in the prime of youth and was to be married in a couple of weeks. It so happened that he came home late after a party, went to bed and did not wake up the next day.
When his mother tried to wake him up she was shocked by the fact that he was cold to touch and unresponsive. As soon as the doctor arrived, he checked Vijay's pulse and confirmed that he was no more. The doctor confirmed that Vijay had died of a cardiac arrest. Whilst Vijay's passing away seemed peaceful as there was no sign of struggle , it shattered his parents, siblings and his fiancee.
Though Vijay couldnt be called a fitness freak, he kept himself active. Overall, by appearance, he seemed fit and healthy. His latest blood test results did not indicate any issue either. What could have been the reason for this sudden and fatal heart failure.
It so happened that Vijay was used to taking Red Bull - an energy drink to keep himself awake and fresh. He had taken it on numerous ocassions. After all it was a health drink. Isn't increased energy synonymous with health?
On this particular night, he had invited few of his close friends for a special event. A bachelors party. Since Vijay had been very busy with his work; a business he had started, he had not been in touch with many of his friends for a long time. On this special occasion, he wanted to make sure that he played a wonderful host and also made full use of this event to catch up with his mates. Sleep and weariness could be overcome with Red Bull, since it was meant to be an energy drink. The party went on well. After the party when Vijay came home he was exhausted, yet very happy. It had indeed been a wonderful day. He wished his Mom good night and then retired to bed. That was the last greeting his Mom heard from him.
Post Vijay's demise as friends and family members tried to look out for reasons as to why such a tragedy would have befallen a youth in his prime someone suggested that it could be due to the energy drink. When his sister looked up the research she did find a couple of articles linking Energy drinks with Depression, Strokes, Arrhythmia and Heart Attacks.
I too loved Vijay and I am sharing this post so as ensure that we can use his life experience to help others. Right now there is nothing else we can do. What has happened has happened and we cannot get Vijay back. However we can save many more Vijays if only we can share this incident with others. So as a family we choose to invest a tragedy for a greater good.
If you know someone who has been taking Energy Drinks please do pass on this post to them so that they are aware of the consequences.
Given below are a few excerpts as well as links to the research and news in media pertaining to the effects of energy drinks.
The high doses of caffeine, often in combination with ingredients with unknown safety profiles, mandates urgent research on the safety of energy drink use in children and adolescents
( NCBI - The National Center for Biotechnology Information )
There is substantial evidence to suggest that the risk energy drinks pose to health are incredibly hazardous and should not be consumed by children and adolescents
( NCBI - The National Center for Biotechnology Information )
"There's been several cases described of people that have gone into cardiac arrest after consuming more than one energy beverage, and when they've done sort of further analysis on these individuals, they haven't been able to find anything abnormal other than the very high levels of caffeine and taurine in the toxicology," Higgins said.
CNN
A new study has found that consuming just one energy drink could increase the risk of heart attack and stroke in 90 minutes, with researchers saying the drinks narrow blood vessels - which can restrict the flow of blood to vital organs.
“Energy drinks could cause public health problems, says WHO study,”
( NHS- UK's biggest health website )