A MAN who suffered a heart attack after drinking eight energy drinks has warned residents against the potential perils of too much caffeine.

Martin Bowling, 28, of Little Wakering, suffered the attack in an Essex pub, after drinking two litres of the popular drink, last year.

A mysterious stranger revived Mr Bowling before an ambulance crew rushed him to a London hospital where high caffeine levels were diagnosed as the cause.

Mr Bowling, an insurance worker, was working about 60 hours a week and spending around £75 a week on energy drinks at the time of the attack.

He said: “I feel lucky and extremely thankful to be alive.

“There was no warning signs, I don’t know if it hurt, I just remember hitting the floor and waking up in hospital.

“Now I see those drinks as death in a can.
“For me £75 is a lot of money.

“I was later told a stranger brought me back to life and I have never had the chance to thank them.

“I would love to meet them.”

He fears addiction is easy with the drinks being cheap and accessible and wants residents to be “careful”.

He said: “I had been drinking them for about seven years and it was like I had become mentally addicted.

“Sometimes I could find myself in arguments if I hadn’t had one.

“The amount I was drinking was slowly increasing since I started when I was 21.

“I would wake up and think of an energy drink then go to sleep after an energy drink – they helped me sleep.

“Even when doctors told me high caffeine levels were the cause, I still wanted a can. It was ridiculous.

“When I was a kid you would buy sweets with spare change – now you see children buying 35p energy drinks - people need to be extremely careful.”

The attack happened on June 1 at The Bull pub, Romford, while Mr Bowling was watching a boxing match, at about 7pm.

He was taken to Queen’s Hospital in Romford, later treated at a specialist chest hospital in London, and would like to give thanks to the medical teams who helped him.

Victoria Taylor, Senior Dietitian at the British Heart Foundation said: “While drinking moderate amounts of caffeine shouldn’t impact your heart health, some people can be more sensitive to its effects.

“Children and young people are particularly vulnerable and can have an exaggerated response to caffeine as they will be less used to it. So avoiding energy drinks is sensible to help to limit their consumption of caffeine.”

Between 300-400mg of caffeine is safe for most healthy adults, according to the European Food Safety Authority.

Here are the averages:
 

  • One 250ml can of energy drink 80mg
  • One mug of filter coffee 140mg
  • One mug of instant coffee 100mg
  • One mug of tea 75mg
  • One can of Coca Cola 40mg
  • One 50g bar of plain chocolate up to 50mg
  • One 50g bar of milk chocolate up to 25mg