Probably not the smartest move to drink very high caffeine energy drinks. The most recent trend has been the 50-60 ml energy shots filled with caffeine. And government agencies as well as health professionals are taking notice.

“Caffeine-loaded energy drinks have now crossed the line from beverages to drugs delivered as tasty syrups,” the Canadian Medical Association Journal says in an editorial that calls for prominent labels listing total caffeine content and an end to advertising targeting children. They are calling for much stricter guidelines in Canada for the higher caffeine energy drinks.

The editor Dr. Paul Hebert, a critical care physician, says “”What are the health concerns of caffeine? With acute intoxication you can get nausea, vomiting, heart palpitations.  You get GI (gastrointestinal) upset, potentially heart arrhythmia, feelings of anxiety and nervousness. You do get hyper-energized to the point sometimes where your thoughts race and you get quite anxious.”
There’s been a move to regulate drinks with too much caffeine or “chemical caffeine.” Health Canada, for one, is now saying it is okay to even market drinks with alcohol and natural xanthines (such as Guarana), but not chemical caffeine.

Daniel Evatt, a research fellow at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore, Md., who has just completed a caffeine treatment study for people addicted to caffeine, says caffeine intoxication can cause insomnia, nervousness and, in rarer reported cases, “bizarre sensory experiences and hallucinations.”

“We have a drug that we know people can become dependent on, and have negative effects from, and it’s being marketed very heavily to young adolescent boys in the form of a drink that can vary a lot in how much caffeine they’re getting,” Evatt said.

So, start looking for natural alternatives, without the really high caffeine content. There is an all natural smart healthy energy drink alternative available.

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