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Father Of Teenager That Died Prepare To Sue Monster Over His Death

Father Of Teenager That Died Prepare To Sue Monster Over His Death

What are your thoughts?

Claire Reid

Claire Reid

Do you think energy drinks can kill?

This is what dad of Dustin Hood thinks - his son died after collapsing on a basketball court of cardiac arrhythmia, which is when your heart beats irregularly.

It can be caused by electrolyte imbalance in your blood, like too much sodium or potassium.
Just before he went on the basketball court, Dustin had downed three and a half 24-ounce cans of Monster, the energy drink. According to Dustin's dad's lawsuit, that's the equivalent caffeine of 14 12-once cans of Coca Cola. In other words, a hell of a lot of caffeine.

Dustin's dad thinks that the Monster is what lead to his death and wants the energy drink to do something about it.

Credit: PA

This isn't the first time that energy drinks have been connected with people's deaths. Red Bull, which is one of Britain's most popular soft drinks, has been connected with several deaths in the UK and in Europe. In Sweden, authorities have warned that it shouldn't be drunk with alcohol or after exercise.

Other cases of people suing energy drink companies

Cory Terry's tried to sue Red Bull back in 2013 after the 33-year-old father died from heart problems immediately after finishing a can of Red Bull. It had been the first time anyone had sued Red Bull - but it started a new awareness of the dangers of drinking too many energy drinks. The clean-living, non-smoker drank Red Bull all the time as it "perked him up," according to his mother.

Red Bull has been sold for almost 30 years across the world and a spokesman said that the company has proved it had no harmful reactions.

More recently, Peter Nicholson, a 29-year-old, died on holiday in Thailand after sharing four buckets of vodka and Red Bull and downing 20 bottles of lager on a 36 hour binge.

He had 341 microgrammes of alcohol in his blood per 100 milliletres - that's four times the legal average. The toxicologist said that he may not have known how drunk he was because of the combination of vodka and Red Bull.

When you mix vodka and Red Bull you mask the effects of alcohol. Red Bull is a stimulant - that's where you get the energy from, whereas alcohol is a depressant. It's called being "wide-eyed drunk."

Featured Image Credit: PA