Source: New York Post
A fitness and caffeine enthusiast died at the age of 28 from a heart attack — and her devastated mother believes energy drinks are to blame.
Florida teacher Katie Donnell was committed to a healthy lifestyle — even as she often drank three energy drinks a day and took a caffeine supplement before hitting the gym.
“At 28, you just don’t see people leaving people dead of a heart attack,” her mother, Lori Barranon, recently told Kennedy News & Media.
“She was a workout queen, she ate real clean, she ate organic food, she was the epitome of health other than [having energy drinks].”
Barranon, 63, claimed her daughter did not have health issues apart from really bad anxiety.
Donnell was spending time with friends in August 2021 when she suddenly fell to the ground as her eyes rolled to the back of her head.
Her pals initially mistook the episode as a stroke.
They called an ambulance — but it was too late.
“She was without oxygen for too long and it caused brain damage,” Barranon said. “They worked on her for three hours, and she never woke up.”
After 10 days in a medically induced coma, her seizures worsened.
Her family had to make the heartbreaking decision to take her off life support.
“Doctors said they see this happen a lot with people who do a lot of pre-workout or energy drinks, but they wouldn’t give the cause of death to that,” Barranon said.
“I know for a fact that was what was wrong with her.”
It’s unclear the brand or type of energy drinks Donnell consumed. While moderate caffeine intake can enhance alertness and physical performance, it can also raise blood pressure, spike heart rate and exacerbate anxiety — none of which is good for heart health. While rare, others have died from caffeine overdoses.
Now, the distraught mother is sounding the alarm in the hopes that other families can avoid similar tragedy.
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