Researchers have warned that just one can of the energy drink could raise the risk of a heart attack or a stroke, even in young people. Dr Scott Willoughby, of the Cardiovascular Research Centre at the Royal Adelaide Hospital, conducted a study of university students, and found that drinking one 250ml can of the sugar-free version increased the ‘stickiness’ of blood, raising the risk of life-threatening blood clots.
One hour after they drank Red Bull, (their blood systems) were no longer normal. They were abnormal like we would expect in a patient with cardiovascular disease. If you get an increase in stickiness and a decreased ability of the blood vessels to stop its stickiness, that adds up to a bad situation. If you add in other risk factors for cardiovascular disease – stress or high blood pressure – this could be potentially deadly.Dr Willoughby
