Contents:
- Medical Video: Energy Drinks and Your Heart
- Why can't energy drinks be taken too often?
- Health risks from consuming energy drinks
- 1. Disorders of the heart
- 2. Insomnia
- 3. Diabetes mellitus
- 4. Dependence
- 5. Overdose of vitamin B
Medical Video: Energy Drinks and Your Heart
Although there is no standard standard regarding the definition of energy drinks, this type of beverage is marketed with an energetic impression, increasing stamina, or increasing energy. In terms of substance, energy drinks refer to non-alcoholic beverages, with the main ingredients such as caffeine, taurine, vitamins, sometimes accompanied by soda. Energy drinks are also equipped with other ingredients that work to "refresh" or are stimulant.
Consumption of energy drinks is now increasingly common, not only at the age of teens and adults, but also parents, even underage children, because this type of drink usually tastes sweet. The main reason someone drinks an energy drink is to get freshness and to be able to stay active all the time. But of course forcing yourself to continue to move even though actually tired is not good for health, because the body needs rest, not just a stimulant drink so that the body does not feel tired. In addition, energy drinks have a direct adverse effect on the body from the ingredients in each package.
Why can't energy drinks be taken too often?
Many energy drinks that contain excess levels are needed by the body. If taken too often or more than one package per day, these drinks can cause concentration problems, nutritional imbalances, and in the long run will cause damage to the body. Ironically, the most dangerous composition is the "energizing" ingredient in the energy drink itself, which is caffeine and sugar.
Some energy drinks do not include the caffeine content contained in one package. Caffeine is the main source of "energy" in addition to other stimulant ingredients that are also contained in this type of beverage. After consumption for some time, some people will experience dependency because they receive a considerable amount of caffeine from energy drinks.
The limit of caffeine that can be consumed by adults is around 400 mg per day, but of course this can be lower or higher for some people. In energy drinks, caffeine is contained in or more than 70 mg to 200 mg, this amount can be increased from other ingredients, namely guarana which is usually contained in energy drinks. If someone also drinks other caffeine sources such as coffee, then he can experience an overdose of caffeine whose effects can be harmful to the heart.
Sugar is the source of the main ingredients of energy for the body (glucose). Usually energy drinks containing glucose that is very high exceeds the need. High glucose consumption without being balanced with activity will trigger obesity and increase blood glucose levels.
One of research Experiments in 2010 showed that consuming too much caffeine in energy drinks would hamper brain performance. Energy drinks are indeed proven to improve a person's cognitive abilities but their function can decrease if consumed too much. In this study, consumption of energy drinks with a dose of 1.8 ml / kg proved to be able to help in concentrating, but with a three-fold higher dose (5.4 ml / kg) will reduce the ability of concentration in individuals.
Energy drinks also contain several other ingredients, but they contain too little to benefit the body. There are also other ingredients which are usually fulfilled without supplements such as Taurine and vitamin B. Especially for B vitamins, there are several types that cannot be absorbed by drinking so that they are immediately wasted and can be absorbed first.
Health risks from consuming energy drinks
The thing you need to pay attention to is the content in each pack of energy drinks, especially caffeine, the amount of which needs to be adjusted to your weight. Following is the impact of consuming too many energy drinks:
1. Disorders of the heart
This may be experienced by individuals who already have a disruption in heart health. The effect on the heart is caused by excessive caffeine consumption which causes arrhythmias, even before a person has a health problem in the heart. Consumption of excess energy drinks can also cause high blood pressure. One of studies by Steinke and colleagues showed an increase in systolic blood pressure of 11% or about 10mmHg per energy drink per day. The effect on someone with a history or risk of heart disease is heart failure that causes death.
2. Insomnia
Energy drinks are useful in keeping someone awake and still feeling refreshed. However, if misused with excessive consumption, a person can not feel sleepy at all. The condition of insomnia will have an adverse effect on physical and mental health, especially the concentration disorder.
3. Diabetes mellitus
This is definitely due to very high glucose levels. Consuming too often will cause insulin deficiency due to a lot of sugar in the blood. Energy drinks themselves already have high sugar levels, and if added by glucose from other foods will cause a burden on the performance of the pancreas in producing the hormone insulin.
4. Dependence
This condition is almost the same as the condition of caffeine dependence in general. However, dependence on energy drinks can also be caused by other stimulants so that the body needs energy drinks to do hard work. The dependence of caffeine in high doses will also be very difficult to eliminate, as a result the dependent individual may consume energy drinks again even for a long time. If you want to stop dependence and stop drinking energy drinks, someone may experience headaches as a symptom withdrawal aka "sakaw".
5. Overdose of vitamin B
Energy drinks contain various B vitamins, one of which is Niacin (vitamin B3). Vitamin B is generally needed in small amounts and can be fulfilled without energy drinks or supplements. However, vitamin B poisoning may occur if someone consumes energy drinks more than one package per day. Symptoms are irritation to the skin, dizziness, arrhythmia, vomiting, and diarrhea. It does not rule out the possibility of hypervitaminosis B condition which causes the beginning of nerve and liver damage.
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