Since giving up most caffeinated beverages and products I’ve noticed that I am more sensitive to it. Your body can build up a tolerance to it so most people will consumer more and more of an energy drink, coffee or weight loss product to try to get the same kick or body response. Caffeine in normal quantities can be tolerated by almost everyone; even decaffeinated coffee has a minimal amount in it.
I am a diabetic so using products with caffeine in it is not recommended; it acts as a vasodilator which constricts the veins reducing blood flow. This is one of the reasons that people who took products like Mini Thins or anything with ephedrine would ‘stack’ (couple) it with aspirin to thin out the blood to counteract the constriction. I still drink regular coffee from time to time when I am desperate but I have some rather odd side effects from it. One of the most visually obvious is an eye twitch. I didn’t make the connection until someone asked me if I had allergies, I do but they are seasonal and usually strike in the late fall. He asked me if I was caffeine sensitive, when I said I was he laughed and told me about how muscle twitches, spasms and limb jerking are side effects of the body receiving a large amount of caffeine that is grossly outside it’s normal range.
Having indulged in a lot of different energy drinks from RockStar, Jolt, NOS and Red Bull, I know exactly what a caffeine overdose feels like. While some may laugh at that, it can be a serious issue. Almost all energy drinks have a consumption warning on the label, exceeding their recommended serving amount could have serious problems for those who are caffeine sensitive. On the mild side of the spectrum you have excessive sweating, stomach cramping, headache, nausea and an eventual onset fatigue (crash) when the caffeine is being purged from the body. More serious side effects of a caffeine overdose include seizures, loss of consciousness, heat stroke, dehydration, vomiting and severely irregular heartbeat. The heart issues are the most damaging; they can cause the heart to work at an accelerated rate which could cause bruising or make it more susceptible to a viral infection. Congestive heart failure is rare from a caffeine overdose but it is a possibility.
When I had my heart attack they asked me if I consumed energy drinks. I said yes, about three or four a day (in addition to coffee). They said that the energy drinks weren’t the only factors in the heart attack but they did contribute to it. When I see people pounding three or four Red Bulls at a time to ‘get a buzz’ from it I want to tell them what they are doing to their bodies but I know they won’t listen. I didn’t and I paid the price for it. I ignored the intense muscle cramps, profuse sweating and heart palpitations and it could have killed me.
Tweens and teens have a greater risk of long term damage to their organs from a caffeine overdose. Those damages are something that they may have to live with for the rest of their lives. In most cases the younger you are the faster your body can recover from an injury but with caffeine it works in an opposite manner. It can cause problems with metabolism, brain function, sleep patterns and growth. Accidental overdoses in infants and toddlers are another concern; over the counter diet pills can contain as much caffeine as one or two cups of coffee. Not only can these cause severe dehydration and muscle spasms but it could lead to oxygen deprivation and impaired brain function.
If you think you are experiencing a caffeine overdose you need to remain calm; getting panic stricken is only going to make the symptoms seem worse. Heart irregularities, profuse sweating followed up with a fever and lack of sweat production and vomiting with blood are all things that need to be addressed immediately at an emergency room. Do not attempt to drive yourself to a care facility, call 911 or have someone take you. Being able to tell them (honestly) what you consumed will help with an immediate treatment plan. They will still do blood tests but they can start to address the issue at hand without having to wait to see if it is another type of drug overdose.
Sources:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002579.htm
http://www.livestrong.com/caffeine-overdose/
