I had a heart attack in 2016, and a stent fitted the week after. Been on standard meds ever since. I've had no angina, no issues and I train hard in the gym 6 days a week doing both hard cardio and weight training. I can cycle miles with no issues, and train with weights for 3 hours with no issues, so I assume i've recovered and my heart is doing fine. My question is, I cannot find any reasons not to use sugar free energy drinks now and again, when my energy is low ? I have done it a couple of times and had no issues at all. I know they pro-long the effects of beta blockers. There is around 150mg caffine in the drink, so I am wondering if there is any actual evidence to suggest they are bad to use occasionally, say once a week. Thanks in advance.
Energy Drinks post Stent: I had a heart... - British Heart Fou...
Energy Drinks post Stent
lol, thats a lot more than I use. I can't find any information on the use of caffine while using Beta Blockers, blood pressure meds etc.
With the caveat that I’m not remotely medically qualified, and this is just my personal experience. I have an unpleasant but generally benign arrhythmia that causes the heart to get stuck at very high but regular rates (supraventricular tachycardia). It started out of nowhere in 2009, and when the cardiologist came to see me after they’d got me sorted out, I was asked about my caffeine intake. At that point I was drinking a ridiculous amount of caffeine every day: around 6 (or more) large instant coffees, plus either 2 litres of energy drink, or 2 litres of Diet Coke. I’ve never fully looked into the veracity of his statement, but the consultant told me that the equivalent of 4 cans of energy drink (a litre) was enough to trigger a heart attack under the right circumstances, and caffeine in general elevates blood pressure . He also said the recommended safe level of caffeine a day for someone healthy and without a heart problem was around 400mg. I think there was a study in 2006 that may have given rise to the heart attack comment, and more recent studies suggest differently, but it’s still worth bearing in mind that for all it’s drunk around the world by the gallon every day, caffeine IS a psychoactive drug. It crosses the blood brain barrier and has proven effects on the central nervous system and people’s thoughts and behaviour. It’s addictive. When I finally completely packed in the caffeine, it’s no exaggeration to say I had physical withdrawals that wouldn’t have looked out of place had I been detoxing from alcohol or heroin. It was hell for a week, and took me more than a fortnight to feel ok. In terms of medication, given that it increases blood pressure and elevates heart rate, that works against the purpose of both bp meds and beta blockers.
So at 150mg of caffine in one go per week is considerably less than most get in coffee per week. I will keep researching, but I feel like I am not going to get adverse issues from that amount. I will speak with the cardiologist , as I am due to speak to them soon.
I would say if you’re not drinking gallons of it then it would be ok. Everything in moderation as they say.👍
I am inclined to agree, which is why I started the discussion, because unless there is actual evidence to the contrary , I would agree with what you said, and not let it worry me. The ability to speak with a cardiologist is non existent in the UK
I used energy drinks and I had a triple bypass please don't drink energy drinks they block your arteries
How on earth can energy drinks block arteries? 😑
I don’t drink energy drinks. I once tried just half a can that my son gave me many years ago and within 20 minutes my heart rate increased and was beating with quite a force.!!My son told me he was drinking 4 a day at work at the time.😳
I asked him if he wanted me to pre book him a bed at the cardiac ward.!!!!
They do stimulate the system I’m sure, but i can’t understand how they would block arteries.?
I think the junk food outlets and rubbish fast food consumption is a massive contributor to blocking arteries.!! Everywhere you go it’s just fast food and junk and I blame the people in power.?
I get knocked back planning permission to extend my kitchen extension on the house but in the same year 2 fast food shops were allowed to open on our road and sell cheap high fat high salt rubbish to anyone who’s daft enough to buy it. I’m sure in the near future our health service is going to be very very busy especially the cardiacs departments.?????
I think the issues would stem from higher heart rates, and stress on the heart when using them often and in volume. And anyone with existing heart issues would need to be extremely careful. This is why im doing research to find out potential issues even when used sporadically
👍👍
Could you provide evidence to that claim please ?
The caffeine can cause temporary, transient, contrictions of the coronary arteries and microvessels, coronary vasospasms.
Angina/ischaemia non obstructive coronary arteries ANOCA/INOCA.
Smoking , cannabis and cocaine have also been known to cause coronary vasospasms.
I no longer drink coffee and avoid anything with high levels of caffeine, also artificial sweeteners as they will make my vasospastic angina which is caused by coronary vasospasms much worse.
I dread to think what would happen if I drank a high energy drink😱
Could you provide some evidence to your claims please ? You maybe speaking the truth, but I would like to see the studies from the medical world before I accept it.
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...
academic.oup.com/ehjcr/arti...
The issue with caffeine as CharlieG has already outlined, is that it can raise your heart rate and cause arrthymias.
This can reduce the blood supply to heart muscle.
My lived experience as someone who has had vasospastic angina for 10 years is that if I drink coffee I will experience more chest pain, increased heart rate and palpitations.
It is your choice to balance the possible risks of drinking high energy drinks with any possible benefits.
Perhaps discuss this issue with your Cardiologist or Cardiac rehab team?
Both those studies refer to two totally different situations, Cocaine induced and Marajuana induced, nothing about caffine. So I will disregard them. I am yet to see a direct relation from any caffine to AF or any such side effects. Bare in mind, I am talking about a moderate use of caffine, one time a week, no more than 150mg in one time.
I would love to speak to either of those teams tbh, unfortunately I am not under either , I was discharged after 6 months after the stent was fitted and never again seen, since 2016 , other than the few times I was admitted with a suspected heart attack which turned out to be a gall stone, on both occasions !!! But again, only through A&E did I get echo's or ECG's. NHS is quite the useless entity unfortunately. Always reactive and never pro-active.
Maybe give the BHF helpline a call and speak to one of the cardiac nurses?
bhf.org.uk/informationsuppo...
Or contact Arrthymia Alliance they have lots of information and they I am sure will help to answer your query about caffeine and heart rhythms.
I am a moderation in all things backed by evidenced based research type of person too😊
I hope you find the answer for you.
Yeah I will do, thank you.
Interesting read, but not what I asked, because that study was "Impact of High Volume Energy Drink Consumption" , I am not intending to drink that much.
The way I do it is,if I work out for an hour or less I drink water.Anything over then I drink a sports drink and that suits me.
Personally I'd avoid them as I consider them an ultra-processed food, but there is one thing to consider.
There is an association between heart disease and low magnesium levels. Here's one reference.
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/297....
It is thought most people have low magnesium levels to some extent as the magnesium content of fruits, vegetables and seeds (the main sources) has decreased over the years due to intensive farming. A workout will definitely deplete electrolytes.
Unfortunately, caffeine can block the absorption of a number of nutrients, magnesium being one.
researchgate.net/publicatio...
Something to think about.
Yeah, which is why I supplement with all electrolytes for this exact reason tbh, have done since I started training, before I ever considered using caffinated products. Thanks.
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