LAWTON, Okla_A popular
energy drink is making national headlines after being linked to five deaths.
Last Friday, the family of a 14 year old Maryland
girl who died in December after drinking two Monster Energy Drinks filed a
lawsuit against the company.
The teenager
who died drank two 24 ounce cans in less than 24 hours. That's the caffeine
equivalent of drinking about ten cans of soda. She went into cardiac arrest due
to caffeine toxicity, which makes it difficult for the heart to pump blood.
Most energy drinks, including Monster, contain an extract called Guarana, which
is three times stronger than coffee. We found out what happened to that girl
could happen to anyone.
Doctors say
these popular energy drinks may give you a boost but the negative side effects
far outweigh the positive and in rare cases can lead to death.
Dr. Mayank Dave
said some people drink three cans of these drinks a day, which is risky.
"In that
much amount, people can get addicted to caffeine and in that big amount,
caffeine is a mild amphetamine. People who use amphetamine have jitteriness,
cramping in the stomach and elevated heart rate,"
In the case of
the Maryland
girl, it has been revealed that she also had a medical condition that could
have contributed to her death. Dr. Dave said that anyone could have risk
factors that can be elevated by caffeine, especially teens.
"They
consume more than three drinks a day sometimes to make them feel better, for
athletic performance and school performance. So, they're at more risk because
they are still growing and their metabolism is different in a younger body than
an adult mature body."
That news is
surprising to some people, who say they need that jolt of energy to get by.
"For
energy wise yes, because I am the age now where I need energy. After you get 75
plus, you know there's not much energy left," Bobby Deats said.
Others say
they've had bad experiences after drinking just one can.
"I drank
it at about ten that night and I was still exhausted all through work, I got
home about ten that night, got off that morning about six. I was up all day
until the next night. It was horrible," Shantae Coley said.
We called Monster
Energy to hear what the company had to say about the drink's potentially
harmful side effects but have not heard back. There is a written message on the
back of the 16 ounce can, it said consume no more than two a day.
Dr. Dave said
everyone's body reacts to caffeine differently. However, if you are burning the
calories contained in an energy drink, one can per day should not be harmful to
your health.
