Drinking Red Bull Energy Drink containing slight traces of cocaine is unlikely to get a person addicted to the drug, doctors said yesterday.
On Saturday, Taipei prosecutors and agents from the Investigation Bureau seized 17,165 cases of Red Bull Energy Drink — worth about NT$25 million (US$781,000) — from importer Nanlien International Co in Taoyuan and Kaohsiung.
The National Bureau of Controlled Drugs on Thursday tested Red Bull Energy Drink and found traces of cocaine, at a concentration of 0.03mg per liter.
Cocaine is a Category 1 drug in Taiwan. Manufacturing, transporting and selling it is a criminal offense punishable by death or life imprisonment.
The energy drink contains taurine (a stimulant), caffeine and vitamins.
Doctors said that a person who consumes more than 100mg of cocaine may experience euphoria, high energy levels, increased heart rate and blood pressure, causing them to become talkative and hypersensitive.
Although the drink contains trace amounts of cocaine, at such low concentration levels, it would not pose a serious threat to a person’s health or get the person addicted, said Yang Chen-chang (楊振昌), a toxicologist at Taipei Veterans General Hospital.
“The concentration level is very low. Even if a person drinks [Red Bull Energy Drink] on a long-term basis, the person is very unlikely to become addicted,” he said.
Yang said the average person would have to consume 1g to 2g of cocaine to die or become critically ill, while people with a low tolerance of the drug may die after consuming 20mg.
This means that people with low tolerance would have to drink 700,000 liters, or 2 million cans, in one sitting to die from an overdose.
Doctors said that people who had consumed Red Bull would have ingested cocaine at such low levels that they were unlikely to be seriously harmed as the body would naturally rid itself of the toxin through natural metabolic processes.
Individuals who feel sleepy should avoid trying to energize themselves by drinking beverages containing large amounts of caffeine or other stimulants, doctors said.
They recommend maintaining regular bedtimes, exercising, stretching and getting fresh air, which are all healthy ways to jump start energy levels without causing harm to the body.
SCENARIOS: A potential conflict with Beijing would not be similar to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and China would target energy and food supplies, a researcher said China is likely to continue using economic and cyberoperations against Taiwan to force it to capitulate without resorting to a military attack, Fox News reported yesterday, citing the outcome of a tabletop exercise. Washington-based think tank the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) earlier this month held a tabletop exercise in Taipei focusing on Beijing’s use of economic and cybercoercion against Taiwan. The FDD mentioned an “anaconda strategy,” in which Beijing would likely use cyberwarfare and disinformation campaigns followed by a blockade or other measures to strangulate Taiwan, rather than attempting an invasion, the report said. A large-scale cyberattack would be
HSINCHU CASES: Five people among 35 who were reported being sick were still in hospital after eating at a vendor in a market in Jhubei, the local health agency said Thirty-five people have sought medical treatment for acute symptoms after allegedly eating banh mi (Vietnamese sandwiches) from a vendor in Jhubei City (竹北), the Hsinchu County Public Health Bureau said yesterday. The bureau said that since Saturday, it has received several reports of suspected food poisoning from hospitals. The vendor has been ordered to temporarily suspend its business, it said, adding that tests were being conducted to determine whether the people had food poisoning, with results expected in about two weeks. A preliminary investigation showed that the people who sought treatment had recently eaten banh mi at a vendor at a retail market
GOOD MODEL: Speaking at his book launch, Law said that Taiwan is the most democratic Chinese-speaking country, which is why Hong Kongers relocated here China has suffocated Hong Kong’s civil society and its next target could be Taiwan, Nathan Law (羅冠聰), cofounder of the disbanded pro-democracy Hong Kong political party Demosisto, said in Taipei yesterday. Law made the remarks at a launch in Taipei for his book When the Wind Blows — the Struggles for Freedom of Hong Kong (時代推著我們前行:羅冠聰的香港備忘錄). Law has been living in the UK since he fled Hong Kong in 2020, and the book is about his fighting for the cause of freedom in the area. He was granted political asylum in 2021. “Fleeing is a long and distressing process, but it also
IMITATING OTHERS? Tsai Ing-wen’s office said the former president rents a commercial unit for her personal office and had never used election funds to purchase real estate Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Chairman Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday confirmed that he used about NT$43 million (US$1.35 million) from his presidential election subsidy to purchase an office unit near the Legislative Yuan in May. Ko made the remarks after Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Taipei City Councilor Lin Yen-feng (林延鳳) earlier in the day told a news conference that she received a tip-off that the TPP chairman had purchased a 48.76 ping (161.2m2) office unit at Jinan Building (濟南大樓), a commercial building in Taipei’s Zhongzheng District (中正). Lin said that Ko purchased the unit on May 10, paying about NT$43 million in cash,