The results of a recent study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggest that daily consumption of a 16 oz. can of an energy drink with 240 mg of caffeine may lead to significantly increased blood pressure and an increased risk of developing a variety of heart-related problems.
Advice: Check your daily caffeine intake. Stop drinking energy drinks that have a high caffeine content!
Here is more about this study:
The participants — all healthy, nonsmoking, medication-free adults — were asked to drink one can of Rockstar Energy Drink and one similar-tasting, caffeine-free placebo drink within five minutes, in random order, on two different days over a span of two weeks. The researchers recorded various cardiovascular data, including heart rate and blood pressure, before and after the participants consumed the drinks.
A single can of Rockstar, they discovered, produced an average blood pressure increase of 6.4% — more specifically, a 6.2% spike in systolic blood pressure and a 6.8% spike in diastolic blood pressure. The placebo drink, meanwhile, only raised participants’ blood pressure by an average of 1%. The Rockstar also led to a 74% jump in levels of noreprinephrine, a hormone that increases blood pressure — significantly higher than the 31% spike caused by the placebo drink. Heart-rate increases were fairly even between the Rockstar and the placebo drink.
It is worthwhile noting that caffeine isn’t the only harmful ingredient in most energy drinks. Energy drinks can contribute to weight gain when they are loaded with sugar!
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