Healthy Soch
Substances such as caffeine and taurine present in these drinks can lead to arrythmia
healthysoch
New Delhi, 1 June 2019:
Consuming too many energy drinks in a short span of time may increase blood pressure and disrupt heart rhythm, a study has found. Energy drinks are readily accessible and commonly consumed by teens and young adults. The need of the hour is to make people aware of the impact of energy drinks on their body especially if they have other underlying health conditions.
Energy drinks contain high levels of caffeine, taurine, and other stimulating substances, and their safety has always been debated. These drinks may increase the risk of sudden cardiac death due to increase in BP and prolonged QT interval, which can lead to life-threatening arrhythmia.
Speaking about this, Padma Shri Awardee, Dr KK Aggarwal, President, HCFI, said, “Having more than two energy drinks may harm the heart and cause conditions like arrythmia or abnormal heart rhythm. This is characterized by either very fast or very slow heart rates. It can lead to inadequate blood supply to various vital organs of the body. Arrythmia usually occurs in a diseased heart and may be often overt or concealed. It is important to get timely checkups done in order to avoid detecting this condition at a later stage when it can become fatal to life.
Adding further, Dr Aggarwal, who is also the Group Editor-in-Chief of IJCP, said, “There is a very small percentage of participant with favorable factors for not getting heart problems. This reiterates the need to adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle to have a healthy heart and this should begin early on in life. As doctors, it falls upon us to educate our patients and make them aware of ways to live a healthy lifestyle to reduce the burden of disease in older age. I teach my patients the Formula of 80 to live up to the age of 80 years.”
The formula of 80 is as follows.
· Keep lower blood pressure, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) ‘bad’ cholesterol, fasting sugar, resting heart rate and abdominal girth all below 80.
· Keep kidney and lung functions >80%.
· Engage in recommended amounts of physical activity (minimum 80 min of moderately strenuous exercise per week). Walk 80 min a day, brisk walk 80 min/week with a speed of at least 80 steps per min.
· Eat less and not >80 gm or mL of caloric food each meal.
· Take 80 mg atorvastatin for prevention, when prescribed.
· Keep noise levels below 8Regular consumption of energy drinks can be fatal to the heart: HCFI
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