Energy Drinks
 

This probably belongs in the Health section but I figured it would get more views here. In the last 18 months I've had 3 friends 42 and younger have heart attacks. The latest just last Thursday. Fortunately they all survived. In each case the Doctor who performed the surgery inquired about how many energy drinks (red bull, etc) they regularly consume. Apparently mixing caffeine and taurine (the ingredients in these drinks) is a bad bad idea according to the doctors. And another had a stroke at 39 although his doc didn't mention these drinks. Food for thought...

For now I'm sticking to Rum and coke :)

Whiskey is FAR better for you!

Sorry to near that about your friends. Did any of your friends actually consume these drinks regularly? Or are you just passing on the doctors information?

All of them drank Red Bull or Rockstar almost daily so I assume there is a connection.

New Study: Do Energy Drinks Affect Your Heart Health? | Men's Fitness

Energy Drinks Linked To An Increased Incidence Of TBI In Teen Athletes And Trouble Recovering

That's why I drink single malt scotch. If you blend, you may run a similar risk...Why take chances?

Stick to coffee:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ly1NjibK79U

For the vast majority of people they are safe to use occasionally, meaning no immediate harm would come of the use, but I would say they are far from "good for you." They are extremely low pH (very bad for teeth), high in sugar, and the huge doses of taurine and niacin, although your body can process them, are not good for your overall health. Ironically most are relatively low in caffeine compared to a large coffee, but some of them do have significant amounts.

If daily Rockstars could cause heart attacks in normal people there would be a LOT more heart attacks - I have patients that consume quite amazing amounts of these drinks. Likely those vulnerable to the effect, or were going to have a heart attack anyway, the drug could accelerate this or bring out bad effects such as arrhythmias, particularly in high doses. If you have a family history of heart disease or are sensitive to the effects I'd just avoid it.

In fact I advise my patients to avoid the whole craze, which IMO is mostly marketing hype toward a macho demographic.

I'm sorry to hear about your friends and I wish them a speedy recovery. I would like to add to the discussion. It is obviously very difficult medically speaking to put the two together (energy drinks = heart attacks) from a scientific point of view. Causation and correlation are sometimes the same but not necessarily the real culprit. Yes we know energy drinks are not good for you, but someone who is drinking them daily is probably ignoring more important health benefits as well ( proper diet, exercise etc).