Energy Drinks Linked to Dangerous Cardiac Arrhythmias in Patients with Genetic Heart Diseases: Study
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A new study, published in Heart Rhythm, examined the potential dangers of consuming energy drinks for patients with genetic heart diseases.
Energy drinks contain caffeine ranging from 80 mg to 300 mg per serving, compared with 100 mg in an 8-ounce cup of brewed coffee. However, most of these energy drinks contain other stimulating ingredients in addition to caffeine that are unregulated by the FDA, such as taurine and guarana. It has been postulated that the highly stimulating and unregulated ingredients alter heart rate, blood pressure, cardiac contractility, and cardiac repolarization in a potentially pro-arrhythmic manner.
In the study, a cohort of 144 sudden cardiac arrest survivors was examined, of which seven patients (5%) had consumed one or more energy drinks in close proximity to their cardiac event. In addition to examining the consumption of energy drinks among the cohort of sudden cardiac arrest survivors, the researchers also looked closely at the type of cardiac event as well as the conditions surrounding the event, such as exercise and other stressors known to be associated with genetic heart disease-associated cardiac arrhythmias.
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