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Teenager in hospital for Red Bull overdose

By Zentaurus41, Feb 21, 2008 | Updated: Mar 1, 2008 | 21 Comments | 6.1K Views | Miscellaneous
  1. Zentaurus41
    Teenager in hospital for Red Bull overdose
    By David Roberts
    [​IMG]A TEENAGER was taken to hospital with heart problems after he drank eight cans of Red Bull.
    Health experts have reminded people of the risks associated with drinking large amounts of caffeine after the 15 year old suffered heart palpitations.
    Ambulances were called to Hummersknott Comprehensive School, Darlington, after the incident on Thursday afternoon.
    They took the boy to the accident and emergency department at Darlington Memorial Hospital, and he was transferred to a ward.
    Each 250ml can of Red Bull contains 80mg of caffeine -nearly twice that of a can of Coca-Cola.
    The drink is banned in Norway, France, Uruguay and Iceland because of its high caffeine content. It also contains taurine, a chemical originally found in ox bile, which is said to alleviate muscle fatigue.
    Judy More, from the British Dietetic Association, said: "Drinking this amount of caffeine takes it out of the realm of a fizzy drink and into that of a pharmaceutical.
    "It depends how big the boy was, but that could be cause for concern if he was quite small, as that would be a lot of caffeine for a small, slight 15-year-old.
    "Parents need to be careful and caution their children about drinking too much of this."
    A spokesman for the Food Standards Agency said there was no obligation for manufacturers of energy drinks to put warnings on the side of their cans, but they are required to display the amount of caffeine.
    A spokeswoman for Red Bull said: "Red Bull energy drink is a functional product which has been developed specifically for periods of mental or physical exertion. One can of Red Bull energy drink contains the same amount of caffeine as a weak cup of filter coffee.
    "We have always recommended drinking one to two cans of Red Bull to have the optimum effect on performance in times of need."
    No one from the school was available for comment.

    http://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/ne...eenager_in_hospital_for_red_bull_overdose.php

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  1. Nucking Futs
    I can well believe this ! I drink 6-8 cans of this to get wired and it does the job really nicely. If things like this continue to happen and gain media attention though i suspect that restrictions will be put in place by gonverment.

    This is a very good case of a legall substance being abused by people that really shouldn't and giving it a bad name.

    FYI in the uk therte is a similar drink called relentless, which is stronger and lasts longer. After 1.5 cans of this my (all 15 stone) heart beats alot faster and increase in BPM (beats per minute) goes from about 70 - 80 to 100 - 120 with no pysical exertion at all.

    Regards,

    ME.
    Nucking Futs, Feb 21, 2008
  2. Lethargy
    Once when much younger and stupider SWIM took about 8 (!!!) 200mg caffeine tabs of some generic brand. He had stayed up all night and kept popping pills for the first two hours of school, waiting a half an hour or so before taking a few more. In his second class he suddenly went pale, started shaking and sweating like mad and went outside for fresh air where he vomited most of the unabsorbed caffeine out.

    He went home "sick" but if he had reported it as a caffeine overdose he might have ended up in the local news. Stuff gets rather toxic at higher doses.
    Stories like this remind us that even legal, "safe" drugs have dangers.
    Lethargy, Feb 21, 2008
  3. Hyperspaceblastoff
    why would that 15 year old drink 8 cans
    i maen i drink 5-6 all the time but i can handle it
    some people just cant, and they give it a bad rap
    Hyperspaceblastoff, Feb 21, 2008
  4. Zentaurus41
    It doesnt matter if drugs are illigal or not, you will still get some dumb ass almost killing him self with substrance x.
    Zentaurus41, Feb 21, 2008
  5. gilligan_911
    swiy should be careful with caffeine. people think that just because its a legal drug its safe, when in actuality 3-20 grams can kill you depending on body weight. also swim knows for him that around 800mg it begins to be less fun and more negative effects.
    gilligan_911, Feb 23, 2008
  6. entheogensmurf
    Ban Redbull! It's the only ...logical thing to do. We must protect the children from this horrendous concoction that only results in hospital visits and perhaps even death. It's only a matter of time!
    entheogensmurf, Feb 23, 2008
  7. gilligan_911
    exactly! its just as logical as criminalizing pot!
    gilligan_911, Feb 23, 2008
  8. rocksmokinmachine
    SWIM remembers the last time he visited Paris. He walked to the bar and asked the woman behind the bar for a double vodka and Red Bull. She gave SWIM a strange look and told him that Red bull was illegal in France.

    It just goes to show that stories like this in local news papers and on the television is what makes prohibition. Good job GIR
    rocksmokinmachine, Feb 23, 2008
  9. GypsySoul78
    Swim think's it shouldn't be sold to anyone under 18/21. Depending on which country you live in. Here in Australia, we are aloud to purchase alcohol at the age of 18, so it really should be the same as that. And it's not only the RED BULL'S either, it can also be those V drink's and Earth mother, etc....there are so many of them now on the market, it's hard to keep up with them......shocking really when you think about it.

    Swim think's as a mother, we have to educate our children on what's out there(alcohol and drug's) and what's good and what's not and hopefully then they can make a good decision.

    I really do think alot of these kid's shouldn't be blamed.....it's the BLOODY PARENTS!!!!!
    GypsySoul78, Feb 24, 2008
  10. Spamuel
    SWIM is a fully qualified barista, which is basically an expert with an espresso machine, in case you wondered.
    During training, we drunk all the shots of espresso made, whilst calibrating the grinder.
    Due to a less than gifted trainee, most of us ended up feeling pretty damn sick, with shakes, headaches, palpitations, etc.
    Caffiene overdoses ain't very pleasant.
    Spamuel, Feb 24, 2008
  11. saorsa.elegy
    Has anyone eaten so much they were sick? Even if one hasn't, they have seen it happen. Hello??? Moderation! Parents don't just hand the kids a bag of chips or cookies etc. We dole out the portions. We teach the proper amount.
    saorsa.elegy, Feb 26, 2008
  12. ♣ Tekken ♥
    they won't put more restrictions on caffeine, in the UK you have to be 12 to buy red bull drinks anyway, there is no way that would go up. Its CAFFEINE!

    when I was about 14 I ate 24 pro plus pills, made me pretty ill, but did keep me awake all night!

    However I have a feeling that bars may have to stop serving red bull/vodka type mixes, as doctors have pointed out its not good for you
    ♣ Tekken ♥, Feb 27, 2008
  13. Zentaurus41
    We should do really, but its so dam confusing for many people when things that are illegal are relatively safe and then we have legal stuff which is so dam harmful.

    But I guess the goverment dosent care as long as people are just taking goverment approved drugs, especialy thoughs that are good for thoes busy worker bee drones.
    Zentaurus41, Feb 27, 2008
  14. psyche
    Good old blame the drug, people should be allowed to be stupid and still survive because the society protects them. From themselves.

    True, parents should educate their childeren about drugs in general, but the problem is that oftentimes they don't realise themselves that the daily cup of coffee they are having is actually a drug. And there is no point blaming anyone. The answer might be something like "Well yeah I didn't do so good job in bringing up these kids, but that's because my own father was a mean drunk." Everything just goes around and these things happen. The Big Bang could be blamed, but who would be angry to that because we all were born as a consequence of it.

    Now that would make caffeine look like the forbidden fruit, and we all know if Adam chose to pick the fruit. The risks associated with serious drinking of caffeine should be elucitated, but restrictions raise the subjective drug-value of caffeine. People are a curious race, as is dictated by evolution.
    psyche, Feb 27, 2008
  15. dutch-marshal
    caffeine is also a drug.... people should treat it like one...just like alcohol...
    dutch-marshal, Feb 28, 2008
  16. TMM
    8 cans of Red Bull? God, that sounds worse than taking 40g of San Pedro/Peruvian Torch, lol
    TMM, Feb 29, 2008
  17. entheogensmurf
    40g wouldn't harm the user and the need for an emergency call for help is unlikely to ever be needed.
    entheogensmurf, Feb 29, 2008
  18. TMM
    I meant the unpleasantness of actually ingesting it.
    TMM, Feb 29, 2008
  19. radiometer
    As opposed to the obvious health benefits of unadulterated vodka?
    radiometer, Mar 1, 2008
  20. KillroyMindless
    swim used to take in an average of 1000 mg of caffeine a day. This didnt really hurt swim at all. it relaxed him but everyone is different.
    idk darwinism comming into play?
    KillroyMindless, Mar 1, 2008
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