Caffeine is one of the most widely consumed stimulants in the world, according to the FDA, but for some, excessive consumption can lead to serious health problems. So how much is too much?
Daniel Russell's life took a dramatic turn five years ago when he says drinking too much caffeine landed him in the ER, following a seizure.
“I literally blacked out, woke up, didn't know what was going on," he said.
“The morning would be coffee, afternoon would be an energy drink, and then my work hours used to be night so it'd be a five-hour energy drink or something to get me through the night,” Russell continued.
Dr. Terrance McGovern at Marian Regional Medical Center in Santa Maria is familiar with cases like Russell's.
"We definitely are seeing an increase in number of patients that come in with complaints revolving around caffeine consumption," Dr. McGovern said.
One of the primary risks is arrhythmia, an irregular heartbeat.
"It can be going too fast in a way that's not sustainable with putting out enough blood to the rest of your body that we need to kind of reset your heart and put it back into a normal rhythm," he explained.
Dr. McGovern says the FDA-recommended amount of caffeine an adult should consume is less than 400mg per day.
Four-hundred milligrams is roughly three to five cups of coffee, 12 cans of soda, or anywhere from one to four energy drinks, depending on the brand and flavor selected.
"It's pretty humbling to say the least. When you are young and you can work as much as I was and stuff, you felt like a machine," Russell said. "But then you learn that this thing can take you down.“
Knowing when to seek medical help is crucial.
“If you're feeling your heart is racing and is just out of control, I'd want you to come into the ER just for us to check really quick because it is relatively quick for us to see if you're in one of these arrhythmias," Dr. McGovern said.
According to Mount Sinai Health Systems, other signs of caffeine overdoses in adults include difficulty breathing, agitation, confusion, and dizziness.
"If we had to give you medication to kind of essentially calm you down, it's the same medication that we would use for like anxiety attacks and things like that," Dr. McGovern said.
Russell has now completely cut caffeine from his diet.
Now that the seizures are gone, he feels much better.
“I do love the smell of coffee or thought of an energy drink. But yeah, I'm not ready to go back to that," he said.
