Are you in that population of alcohol consumers who like to mix their drink with energy drinks? Well, this should interest you; researchers have warned that people who mix alcohol with energy drinks risk heart palpitations and disturbed sleep.



A study found that the highly-caffeinated drinks used by millions to make them extra-alert on a night out raised the odds of a range of health problems. Revellers who used energy drinks as a mixer were six times as likely to suffer heart palpitations as those who drank their alcohol straight or with a normal soft drink. They also had four times the odds of sleep difficulties and were more prone to tremors, irritability and so-called jolt and crash episodes – sudden, short-lived bursts of energy followed by exhaustion.

The symptoms are similar to those produced by caffeine, one of the chief ingredients of energy drinks such as Red Bull.

One can of Red Bull contains 80mg of caffeine, around the same as two cans of cola and slightly less than a mug of instant coffee.

A spokesman from the British Soft Drinks Association said: ‘People who choose to drink alcoholic drinks should consume them in moderation, whether they are mixed with energy drinks or not.’

The results of the study revealed that energy drinks may cancel out some of alcohol’s sedating effects, leaving drinkers more awake and less likely to suffer signs of tipsiness such as slurred speech or clumsiness. But this alertness came at a cost.

Researcher Amy Peacock said: ‘They (subjects for the study) also had a greater chance of experiencing several side-effects linked to over-stimulation, including heart palpitations, increased speech speed, sleeping difficulties, agitation and tremors, jolt and crash episodes, irritability and tension.’

Some researchers have said that energy drinks’ masking of drunkenness could badly impair judgement, leading people to do things they might not do otherwise – such as drinking and driving or getting into fights. However, this study found the opposite to be true, with energy drink fans being less likely to take a range of risks.

But the researchers, who report their findings in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research (MUST CREDIT), said the topic needs to be studied more deeply and said that energy drink lovers shouldn’t assume that being extra alert somehow protects them from danger.

Previous research has linked energy drinks with heart problems, with just one can raising blood pressure and making blood more ‘sticky’- and so potentially raising the odds of heart attacks and strokes.

So when next you are at the bar, clubbing or just thinking of mixing that alcohol with an energy drink, remember the danger such a mixture poses to your health.

ismhab: ALCOHOL IS NOT GOOD AT ALL.

JaiyeJeje: Why anyone would mix alcohol, a depressant, with a caffeine-laden energy drink, a stimulant, still baffles me. You are subjecting your entire circulatory system to unnecessary pressure. Its not even the heart that should be the only organ of note here, other highly perfused ones like the kidneys would suffer a negative fate in the long run.

mercurie: Almost all foods or drinks consumed are now risk 2 human lives through researches, may God c us 2ru

JaiyeJeje: Why anyone would mix alcohol, a depressant, with a caffeine-laden energy drink, a stimulant, still baffles me. You are subjecting your entire circulatory system to unnecessary pressure. Its not even the heart that should be the only organ of note here, other highly perfused ones like the kidneys would suffer a negative fate in the long run.

Mr--Why:


Oh yea, because most "modern food and drinks" are chemicalized.

If you want to stay healthy, better yet, eat natural food and eat natural drinks.

12 inches!:
Anyway....I take alcoholic drinks...And for ur information takin alcohol is not analogous to irresponsibility....I'm not that kind of drinker...I'm the kind of drinker that takes a long nap wen tipsy...Anyway noted...No more takin alcohol with energy drinks...If u want to say becos of one thing or the other u won't do some things u will end up not enjoyin life for what it is.....And life is short..So.... A great french cook called Julia Child was once criticized for are too fatty recipes and are response was " The key is to do everything in moderation, I believe pple shud enjoy and savor their meals...Paying too much attention to nutrition won't allow u too enjoy food and enjoy life" My philosophy is too live on the edge; atleast once in a while.

js_pac: Live life before it leaves you, live fast DIE YOUNG!

Burger01:

Oga, pardon me, se we dey 'eat drinks'?

12 inches!:


I pray I live to be 70 and over but I prefer to die young than to not av lived at all. Look at 2pac...lived jst 23 yrs yet we still talk abt him and listen to his music today. So many 70 year olds that die everyday and no one even knw them or their loss of existence.