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MONDAY, November 5, 2018 (HealthDay News) – Energy drinks containing caffeine are popular, but they could reduce the effectiveness of your blood vessels, according to a small study.
These drinks – sold under the names Monster and Red Bull, to name just two – have been linked to heart, stomach and stomach problems, researchers say.
"Many young children are consuming energy drinks when they are exercising, a time when you need your arterial function to be on top," said Dr. John Higgins, chief investigator. He is a professor of medicine at the McGovern School of Medicine at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center in Houston.
Exercise and sport require maximum blood flow so that oxygen can reach cells quickly, said Higgins. Energy drinks that reduce vessel diameter actually limit blood flow and oxygen delivery, he explained.
"It's more work for the heart and less oxygen for the heart." This could explain why children have already had cardiac arrest after an energy drink, "he said.
Plus, people often drink energy drinks to get the full effect of a shot, which could be dangerous, Higgins said.
"These drinks are not for kids," warned Higgins. In addition, people under the age of 18, pregnant or breastfeeding women, caffeine-sensitive people, those who take stimulants or caffeine-based medications or those who suffer from heart disease should avoid energy drinks, he added.
The study included 44 healthy medical students and non-smokers in their twenties. The researchers tested the effect of a 24-ounce energy drink on the cells lining the blood vessels, called endothelial cells.
The function of these cells was tested before and after the participants had consumed the energy drink and again 90 minutes later. The researchers studied dilation induced by arterial flow – an ultrasound measurement that is an indicator of the overall health of blood vessels.
After 90 minutes, the researchers found that the internal diameter of blood vessels tested was considerably smaller than average before.
The researchers suggested that this negative effect on the blood vessels could be related to the ingredients of the energy drink, such as caffeine, taurine, sugar and other medicinal plants. Taurine is an amino acid presented as a growing energy. It was originally extracted from bull semen – hence the name Red Bull, the researchers said.
According to Dr. David Katz, director of the Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center at Yale University, "endothelial function is, in general, a powerful indicator of cardiovascular risk."
But, said Katz, "this is a small study focusing only on acute effects and can not be considered as evidence that energy drinks are harming the cardiovascular system over time."
That being said, the combination of sugar and stimulants in these drinks has no proven benefit, Katz added.
"There are much better ways to boost energy, such as standing up and doing a bit of exercise," he suggested. "In the absence of a reliable advantage, even a low level of risk is unacceptable."
A spokesperson for a pressure group representing many energy drink manufacturers said that these drinks were safe.
"Traditional energy drinks contain about half of the caffeine in a cup of coffee of similar size, and have been widely studied and confirmed to be safe for use by government authorities," said William Dermody. word of the American Beverage Association. "Nothing in this preliminary research contradicts this well-established fact."
The results of the study are to be presented on November 12 at a meeting of the American Heart Association in Chicago.
Research presented at meetings is generally considered preliminary until it is published in a peer-reviewed journal.
More information
To learn more about caffeine and heart disease, visit the American Heart Association website.
SOURCES: John Higgins, MD, Professor of Medicine, McGovern School of Medicine, University of Texas Health Sciences Center, Houston; David Katz, M.D., M.P.H., Director, Yale-Griffin Prevention Research Center at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut; William Dermody, spokesperson for the American Beverage Association, Washington, D.C .; November 12, 2018, presentation, meeting of the American Heart Association, Chicago
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