Can excessive consumption of caffeinated drinks like “Sting” and “Charged” cause high BP and hypertension?

MUMBAI: We are self-confessed “Sting” addicts and need at least 500 ml or two small bottles (250 ml each) of Sting for our daily fix.

Of late, we have been trying out the newly introduced “Charged” by Thums Up, but “Sting” wins hands down, both in terms of taste as well as the instant burst of energy, that “Charged” somehow fails to deliver, in spite of a higher sugar and carbohydrate content.

However, of late, some of us have begun experiencing continuous deadly headaches, which seem to increase with the increased consumption of these caffeinated drinks like “Sting” and “Charged”, so we decided to get it checked out.

According to one of the medical experts we visited, Dr Pranav Kabra of the Raksha Multispecialty Hospital at Malad in suburban Mumbai, excessive consumption of caffeinated drinks like “Sting” and “Charged” can definitely cause a spurt in blood pressure, eventually leading to hypertension and even minor cardiac problems like disrupted heart rhythm.

“Caffeine is a known trigger for high blood pressure and hence there is a warning on all energy drinks containing caffeine. Excessive and prolonged consumption of caffeinated drinks like “Sting” and “Charged”  and all other similar energy drinks like Red Bull, Monster, Predator, etc., can definitely lead to high blood pressure and Stage II hypertension, which requires medical diagnosis and treatment. The risk factors increase with age and a person above 50 should definitely avoid excessive consumption of caffeinated drinks,” opined cardiac and diabetes expert Dr Pranav Kabra.

According to medical information available online, energy drinks could cause high blood pressure and potentially lethal heart problems in some individuals. Doctors have warned people with high blood pressure to ‘use caution and judgment’ before consuming caffeinated drinks, after recognizing that such drinks increase blood pressure and disturb the heart’s natural rhythm, possibly causing cardiac problems.

Caffeine can cause a short, but dramatic (and often problematic) increase in blood pressure, even if you do not normally have high any blood pressure issues. It is unclear what causes this spike and blood pressure response to caffeine differs from person to person. The spike in blood pressure increases with age and persons above 55 years of age could experience huge spikes in their BP after consumption of highly caffeinated drinks.

Some of the other symptoms of excessive caffeine consumption include increased heart rate, high blood pressure, heart palpitations, Insomnia, dehydration and restlessness. Other symptoms could be experienced by different individuals depending on various other physiological factors.

Doctors have recommended a restriction on the consumption of caffeinated drinks with the limit set at only one serving per day or a maximum of 500 ml. This depends on the amount of caffeine present in each serving. When it comes to “Sting” and “Charged” you must definitely not consume more than 500 ml (250×2 or one large 500 ml bottle). This is also mentioned on the bottle packaging and both “Sting” and “Charged” carry this warning.

“Those with prevalent cardiac and hypertension problems or those individuals with Stage II hypertension and more, should avoid these drinks all-together,” opines Dr Kabra.