A Single Energy Drink Increases Risk of Heart Attack and Stroke and Worse, Study Confirms
A new study just gave people some solid evidence suggesting that the consumption of just one regular energy drink is capable of increasing the risk of heart attack and stroke in 90 minutes. The new study will be presented on November 12 at the meeting of the American Heart Association in Chicago.
Researchers note that energy drinks make blood vessels narrower, potentially restricting the flow of blood throughout the body and to vital organs.
Unfortunately as much as energy drinks feel useful and necessary to drink, or coffee at least, several previous studies have found a link between those drinks and heart, stomach, and nerve problems. New findings hailing from the University of Texas in Houston are some of the first to specifically focus on the possibility of increased heart attack and stroke risk.
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Really it isn’t anywhere near the first evidence that there’s a connection between the two, but some people need it to be quantified in that hard, scientific way to believe it. Common sense can suggest there’s a link, but in this case it’s also very necessary to have detailed, scientific evidence and research to back this up, so it should be appreciated because not all studies are willing to be this honest.
The researchers looked at 44 students attending the McGovern Medical School at UTHealth. Every participant was in their 20’s, and they were all classified as “healthy non-smokers.”
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To begin, they tested the function of endothelium, the layer of cells that lines the surface of blood vessels.
Dysfunction of this layer lining blood vessels has been shown to indicate arteries that aren’t able to properly dilate, and therefore heart attack.
The endothelial function of participants was tested, and then each of them proceeded to drink a 24 ounce (very large) energy drink, before receiving another test of the bodily process an hour and a half later.
Within just 90 minutes, the internal diameter of those blood vessels had on average been decreased by almost half. This protective cellular lining of blood vessels was made thinner, almost immediately.
These are specific, well tested and solid findings, truly what science is supposed to be: the scientific method, just straight evidence.
The test can be replicated by any person capable of performing these tests that evaluate endothelial function.
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A professor of medicine at the Houston School, Dr. John Higgins said “As energy drinks are becoming more and more popular, it is important to study the effects of these drinks on those who frequently drink them and better determine what, if any, is a safe consumption pattern.”
This study seems very to the point and solid, with its evidence very transparent and easy to understand. In the past, other studies exploring the effects of energy drinks found similar things.
A University of Waterloo study from Ontario, Canada found that 55% of people aged 12 to 24 surveyed reported suffering various conditions such as chest pains, vomiting, even seizures after consuming energy drinks.
One can assume coffee and tea, or a lot of strong coffee, has a similar effect, and caffeine was probably the principal thing being studied in these papers, although other not so great chemicals and sugar are also present in energy drinks, and sugar must be a huge factor.
According to Professor David Hammond, the lead author of the Canadian study: “Most risk assessments to date have used coffee as a reference for estimating the health effects of energy drinks, however, it is clear these products pose a greater health risk.
The health effects from energy [drinks] could be due to different ingredients than coffee, or the ways in which they are consumed, including with alcohol or during physical activity.”
Caffiene has also been linked to worsening type 2 diabetes, and rising blood sugar levels. It’s definitely not great for us, writers drink it a lot and they can feel those negative effects.
