Too many energy drinks led to case of hepatitis, doctors warn

Downing too many energy drinks can cause hepatitis, doctors have warned.

For three weeks, a construction worker drank four or five energy drinks per day to help keep up with his intense workload. Then his body went haywire. In a bizarre case Florida doctors describe in the British Medical Journal, the 50-year-old man started gulping down energy drinks on the job but suddenly began vomiting after about three weeks.

Soon, his skin turned yellow, but it wasn’t the caffeine or even the sugar that was the problem. At a hospital, the man showed signs of liver damage and a biopsy confirmed he had acute hepatitis, believed to have been brought on by high intake of vitamin B3, or niacin, found in his energy drink of choice: Just one contained 200% of the daily recommended dose.

According to the BMJ report:

Physical examination revealed jaundice and right upper quadrant abdominal tenderness. Laboratory studies were remarkable for transaminitis and evidence of chronic hepatitis C infection. Ultrasound scan demonstrated an echogenic liver and diffuse gallbladder wall thickening. Liver biopsy showed severe acute hepatitis with bridging necrosis and marked cholestasis.

Which is all to say: Yikes. Doctors believe high levels of niacin in energy drinks caused the patient’s acute hepatitis with each bottle containing 40 milligrams (or two times the recommended daily value) of the vitamin. Keep in mind — this guy was drinking four or five every day. Eventually, they discovered that the patient had previously been infected with hepatitis C (transmitted through sex, blood, and shared needles) which may have increased his risk of further non-viral hepatitis. They encourage patients with acute hepatitis to consult physician before consuming energy drinks and other supplements with high concentrations of potentially damaging ingredients.

According to the BMJ, Americans are consuming more energy drinks and herbal supplements that are supposedly made with “natural ingredients.” But the Journal points out that just because ingredients are free of preservatives doesn’t mean they’re harmless.

This whole report comes just a few days after a team of researchers at Purdue University discovered that the combination of alcohol and caffeine causes changes in the brain very similar to those caused by cocaine.

Agencies/Canadajournal