主要研究人員、德州大學健康醫學中心（University of Texas Health Science Center）醫學院教授希金斯（John Higgins）表示，運動需要大量的血液流動，以迅速將氧氣送至細胞。他表示，能量飲料會使血管的管徑縮小，影響血液流動和氧氣運送。
希金斯說：「這就是為何會發生孩童在喝了能量飲料後心臟停跳的案例。」研究人員表示，能量飲料會對血管帶來負面影響，可能與成分有關，譬如咖啡因、牛磺酸、糖分及其他藥草。
連結：A Single Energy Drink Might Harm Blood Vessels: Study
Caffeine-laden energy drinks are popular, but they might make your blood vessels less efficient, a small study suggests.
These drinks — sold as Monster and Red Bull, to name two — have been linked to heart, nerve and stomach problems, researchers say.
“A lot of young kids use energy drinks when they exercise, a time when you need your arterial function to be at its top,” said lead researcher Dr. John Higgins. He’s a professor of medicine at McGovern Medical School at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston.
Exercise and sports require maximum blood flow so oxygen can get to cells quickly, Higgins said. Energy drinks that reduce the vessels’ diameter, in effect, restrict blood flow and oxygen delivery, he explained.
“It’s more work for the heart and less oxygen supply for the heart. This could explain why there have been cases where kids have had a cardiac arrest after an energy drink,” he said.
Plus, people often chug energy drinks so they get the full effect in one shot, and that might be dangerous, Higgins said.