[ad_1]
In a world where working longer and longer is becoming the norm, products that keep us awake and alert have quickly become must-haves for millions of people. Coffee, the old reserve machine, is strongly challenged by energy drinks and the trend is intensifying in all age groups.
Now, a new study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association suggests that drinking often sweet drinks is more than a simple, expensive habit, and that this could actually play serious tricks on our heart, leading to emergency room visits and even death.
Researchers participating in the study have set up an experiment to track changes in heart rate and blood pressure after consuming a popular energy drink. The trials, in which 34 adults aged 18 to 40 participated, divided the volunteers into two groups and gave half of the participants one of two energy drinks, while the rest received a placebo.
The volunteers were fasting when they consumed the drinks to provide the most accurate data possible. Scientists monitored the heart rate and blood pressure every 30 minutes after the start of the experiment. After four hours of monitoring, the trials were completed and the researchers analyzed the numbers.
Unsurprisingly, the researchers found that various heart measurements had changed dramatically after consuming one of two energy drinks, but this should be pretty obvious. However, a significant change has been noted that could indicate a cause for the increase in the number of emergency room visits and health emergencies related to the consumption of energy drinks, and this is related to the time needed for the heart to perform a "beat".
The time required for the heart chambers to contract and then become relaxed again is called the QT interval. The overall heart rate can affect the rate at which a heartbeat occurs. Doctors correct this factor with the help of a measure called QTc. It is thought that a high QTc is linked to serious heart problems, including arrhythmias and even deaths of cardiac origin.
The study shows that energy drinks have drastically changed the QTc interval figures, which were significantly higher than those who had consumed the placebo drink. High QTc remained as long as four hours after drinking. The researchers noted that it was not known which ingredient or combination of ingredients affected the most QTc numbers and that further study was warranted.
Image source: imageBROKER / REX / Shutterstock
[ad_2]
Source link