Reasons Why Energy Drinks Are Bad For You

While they sit innocently next to water and soda pop on your grocer's shelves, energy drinks are not safe for everyone. These beverages can make many medical conditions worse. They can even pose a risk for healthy people. The problems range from life threatening to merely annoying. Here are a few examples:

Depression: If you suffer from anxiety, depression or any mood related disorder, stay away from these products. Not only can they make the condition worse, they interact with the medications intended to relieve them. This is especially true of major clinical depression and bipolar disorder.

Diabetes: These beverages provide a double whammy for diabetics. First, the sugar content is high in most brands, though there is one brand that is sugar free. However, the caffeine content increases the effects of the sugar, causing extremes in blood sugar levels.

Heart Disease: While it may not be a primary cause, beverages with caffeine can make heart problems worse. Angina, rapid or irregular heartbeat and other difficulties can occur after consuming products with that in it.

Kidney Disease: Your kidneys are your body's filtration system. Blood passes through them and impurities are filtered out. High amounts of sugar must be filtered to keep your levels normal. Caffeine is a diuretic, meaning it increases urine production. Both of these are very hard on healthy kidneys and therefore can make those suffering from problems worse.

Nutrition: Tannic acids such as those found in energy drinks block up to sixty percent of the absorption of vitamins and minerals, both from tablets and from food. That means the vitamins in them are probably not doing as much for you as taking the same amount with water. It also means that the tablets you swallow are going to flush right through your system and out the other end, unused.

Sleep: Unless you are ADHD, sleep will be difficult for several hours after using any of these products. If you're trying to sleep or have noticed difficulties, cut the energy drinks. If you're using them to avoid sleep for whatever reason, keep in mind that you need a minimum of seven hours a night to remain healthy. A lot of bad things can happen if you skimp in this department.

If you don't have the energy to do things without these beverages, talk to your doctor. Part of it may be addiction; your body has learned to depend on them. However, lack of energy is a symptom of many medical conditions. Listen to your body.

One last word of advice. If you have been consuming large amounts of these products, stopping abruptly will lead to one of the worst headaches you can imagine. It's best to taper off slowly to avoid this problem.