Young and Thin Most at Risk for Caffeine Overdose

Given how many of us consume caffeine on a daily basis, it's surprizing that so few people die of caffeine overdose. But some do.

Just to put this in perspective, millions of us guzzle too much coffee, and suffer the side effects of caffeine without too much cause for concern. Of those, thousands are hospitalized in the United States every year with caffeine toxicity. This can be serious, with symptoms such as delusions, hallucinations, seizures and coma occasionally occurring. Only a few actually die, usually from heart problems associated with acute caffeine intoxication.

One of the most disturbing aspects of those who are seriously harmed by taking too much caffeine is that about half are children aged under 18, who are victims of the aggressive marketing of energy drinks.

Another particularly vulnerable group is adults with lower body weight, such as people with low body weight resulting from eating disorders. One of the disturbing aspects of the pro-ana movement is enouragement of followers to consume large amounts of caffeine in an attempt to lose weight.

And if you take antidepressants, particularly SSRIs, you run the risk of developing serotonin syndrome if you take too much caffeine.

So while a daily cup of tea or coffee is not considered harmful to healthy adults, kids and underweight adults, and those taking SSRIs should be much more cautious. Caffeine pills, energy drinks, and multiple expressos are the most risky forms of this seeminly innocuous drug.