The AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION (AHA) recently announced that energy drinks can dangerously affect heart function and blood pressure.

This announcement was made at the American Heart Association’s Scientific Sessions and came as quite a surprise to researchers.

The AHA report was based on clinical studies that demonstrated “Blood pressure and heart rate levels increased in healthy adults who drank two cans a day of a popular energy drink containing Taurine and caffeine.”

DANGEROUS COCKTAIL

Clinical trials involving energy drinks have shown that caffeine/Taurine beverages can be dangerous to patients with heart disease, and that drinking more than two cans a day can lead to higher risk increases, even in healthy people (1).

The researchers advised people with high blood pressure and heart rate to "avoid these drinks".

The dangerous cocktail of Taurine and caffeine was proven to cause pressure-induced bradycardia which induced changes in heart rate and mean arterial blood pressure.

SAFETY OF CAFFEINE

Caffeine is safely consumed in high doses on a daily basis, by most Americans, in the form of coffee, rendering Starbucks ® one of the most popular beverage-destinations. Globally, coffee is one of the top-3 most consumed beverages in the world.

Consumption of caffeine is known to cause fat-storage, but does not cause the serious health effects as evidenced in the combination of caffeine and Taurine.

In double-blind placebo trials, the strictest and most accurate form of clinical trials, Red Bull was proven to cause “significant decline in heart rate and an increase in mean arterial blood pressure (2).” Red Bull contains both Taurine (an amino acid) and caffeine.

Caffeine has been safely consumed in both high and low doses for decades, and only recently has the combination of caffeine and Taurine been introduced in functional beverages.

It is clear, from the scientific evidence, that combinations of caffeine and Taurine can cause serious potential health effects.

ENERGY DRINKS JOLT BLOOD PRESSURE

MEDSCAPE, Diabetes & Endocrinology; Energy Drinks Jolt Blood Pressure (3), reported that energy drinks containing caffeine and the amino acid Taurine, “can adversely affect heart function and blood pressure.”

The results prompted researchers to advise people with hypertension or heart disease to avoid energy drinks containing caffeine and Taurine, as they could impact the effectiveness of medication, as well as their blood pressure.

Top Neurologists have additionally confirmed that the combination of caffeine and Taurine could cause seizures in humans. Researchers stated that large consumption of energy drinks that contain both caffeine and Taurine can provoke seizures (4). The Neurologists reported that “Once the patients were abstinent from the energy drinks, no recurrent seizures were reported.”


EUROPEAN COMMISSION ON FOOD SAFETY

The European Commission on Food Safety (ECFS) concluded that reasonable levels of caffeine ingestion are safe in humans, and that levels of 300 mg/day caffeine, even in pregnant women, show no evidence of health problems. The EUFS stated, “Most of the available epidemiological data [on caffeine] suggest there is no problem if total intake is below 300 mg caffeine/day.”

Regarding Taurine ingestion in humans, the European Commission on Food Safety (ECFS) reported that:

•	At present, there is insufficient information on which to set an upper safe level for daily intake of Taurine.
•	It may also be necessary to take into consideration, that absorption of Taurine from beverages may be more rapid than from a food matrix.
•	Against this background, the Committee is unable to conclude that the safety-in-use of Taurine in the concentration range reported for Taurine in "energy" drinks has been adequately established.
•	Further studies would be required to establish an upper safe level for daily intake of Taurine.

DRINKS CONTAINING CAFFEINE & TAURINE

According to Wikipedia.org January 2008, energy drinks that contain both caffeine and Taurine include Red Bull, Full Throttle, NOS, Rockstar, Monster, Rip It and SoBe.

Many other energy drinks contain caffeine and Taurine, so consumers are encouraged to read the labels to ascertain if the product contains Taurine combined with caffeine. If in doubt, contact the manufacturer.

IN CONCLUSION

Alarmed by current research regarding the combination of caffeine and Taurine, the news media alerted the public as to the potential dangers of energy drinks.

MSNBC and Medical News Today warned people to avoid consuming beverages that contain caffeine and Taurine.

Though some of the energy drinks are targeted at athletes, researchers have also warned against the use of energy drinks during sports events and/or intense exercise.

As a result, some countries advise against using energy drinks to quench thirst while playing sports. Researchers explain that “Blood pressure and heart rate naturally go up during physical activity, and that this could be further augmented by energy drinks (Kalus et al)(1).

The bottom line is that caution is recommended in selecting energy beverages that contain both caffeine and Taurine, particularly in persons with specific health profiles, such as cardiovascular, hypertension (blood pressure), pregnancy, lactating women, children under age 18, and during sports events.

REFERENCES & BIBLIOGRAPHIES Skinny Science ® NUTRITION NEWS Newsletter No. 12008 January 2008

(1) Dr. James Kalus, Leah Steinke, Pharm.D., Vishnuprabha Dhanapal, Pharm.D., Helen D. Berlie, Pharm.D., David E. Lanfear, M.D. Henry Ford Hospital.2007

(2) Bichler et al. Univ of Wisconsin. Amino Acids. 2006 Nov;31(4):471-6. A combination of caffeine and taurine has no effect on short term memory but induces changes in heart rate and mean arterial blood pressure.

(3)MEDSCAPE, Diabetes & Endocrinology; Energy Drinks Jolt Blood Pressure. Nov 2007

(4) Iyadurai SJ, Chung SS. Epilepsy Behav. 2007 May;10(3):504-8. Epub 2007 Mar 8; New-onset seizures in adults: possible association with consumption of popular energy drinks.

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