American teen dies after consuming too much caffeine

Aside from coffee, energy drinks and sodas are loaded with caffeine.  FILE PHOTO

Everything in excess is bad for you, including your favorite stimulant caffeine.

One high school student in South Carolina, USA, found it out the hard way, as he passed away after consuming too much of the energy-inducing substance, a coroner confirmed.

According to New York Daily News, 16-year-old Davis Allen Cripe was rushed to Palmetto Health Parkridge Hospital after collapsing inside a classroom last April 26.

Upon being examined by Richland County Coroner Gary Watts, the young lad was deemed to have died due to a cardiac event, caused by an excessive amount of caffeine in his body.

“We lost Davis from a totally legal substance,” Watts was quoted as saying in the report. “It was so much caffeine at the time of his death, that it caused his arrhythmia. These drinks can be very dangerous.”

Two hours before he lost consciousness, Cripe reportedly consumed a large diet Mountain Dew, a cafe latte from McDonald’s and some kind of energy drink—which triggered arrhythmia or an irregular heartbeat.

Surprisingly, Watts added that Cripe had no signs of any “unfounded” or “undiagnosed heart condition” whatsoever.

Furthermore, the pathologist explained that a cup of caffeine or soda is highly unlikely to cause a cardiac episode.

However, Cripe’s decision to ingest large quantities in a short time span might have played a huge factor.

When consumed in regulated moderation, caffeine is considered as the world’s most used psychoactive drug due to its ability to alter brain functions such as perception, mode, consciousness and even behavior.  Khristian Ibarrola /ra/rga