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An energy drink new to Utah has so much caffeine in it, it makes other brands look tame by comparison. The drink, called Spike Shooter, is plastered with warnings, and it does what it says.
You've seen them on the shelves: drinks boasting instant energy, all full of caffeine. But Spike Shooter has more caffeine than any of them.
The caffeine in a can of Spike is equivalent to the caffeine in three cans of Red Bull, or three No Dose tablets, or five cups of coffee, or six cans of soda.
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The drink comes with multiple warnings: "Never exceed one can daily" and "Do not use if you are under the age of 18 or elderly."
"It can increase the heart rate significantly, and it can also increase the blood pressure," said Barbara Insley Crouch, with the Utah Poison Control Center.
To see how it affected Courtney, a medical assistant with University Health Care tested her blood pressure, heart rate and respiration. She found everything to be normal.
Afterward, Courtney drank all 8 ounces of Spike Shooter, and it didn't take long to start feeling the effects. "It's been about 15 minutes since I drank all of this, and already I'm feeling a little jittery, a little shaky. I can definitely notice a difference in how I'm feeling from when I didn't have it in my system," she said.
When the medical assistant tested Courtney's blood pressure this time, it had spiked. "You're at that hypertensive range, where you were totally normal before. So, you went up a lot," she said.
"For a few minutes, in a normal healthy person, that's fine. But if you're constantly drinking stuff like this, it probably is concerning that your blood pressure would go up this much," said Dr. Margaret Soloman, with University Health Care.
Soloman says energy drinks should be used with caution. With the amount Courtney drank, she could be feeling jittery for up to six hours.
"Just kind of have to live with it until it gets out of your system," Soloman said.
Meanwhile, some parents are upset their teens are able to buy the drink in Utah, and nutritionists say the drinks are definitely not for children.
One mom says her 14-year-old son went into a 7-Eleven and walked out with Spike Shooter, despite the warning label.
Sara Oldroyd, a dietitian with the Utah State University Extension Service in Salt Lake County, says teens can quickly build a tolerance and need more of the drink, but it can damage their growing bodies and brains.
The drink is actually banned in Colorado high schools after some teens were hospitalized after drinking it. It used to be a diet pill but was made into an energy drink.
E-mail: corton@ksl.com
E-mail: mrichards@ksl.com
