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.
WANG RELEASED: A police investigation showed that an organized crime group allegedly taught their clients how to pretend to be sick during medical exams Actor Darren Wang (王大陸) and 11 others were released on bail yesterday, after being questioned for allegedly dodging compulsory military service or forging documents to help others avoid serving. Wang, 33, was catapulted into stardom for his role in the coming-of-age film Our Times (我的少女時代). Lately, he has been focusing on developing his entertainment career in China. The New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office last month began investigating an organized crime group that is allegedly helping men dodge compulsory military service using falsified documents. Police in New Taipei City Yonghe Precinct at the end of last month arrested the main suspect,
A cat named Mikan (蜜柑) has brought in revenue of more than NT$10 million (US$305,390) for the Kaohsiung MRT last year. Mikan, born on April 4, 2020, was a stray cat before being adopted by personnel of Kaohsiung MRT’s Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station. Mikan was named after a Japanese term for mandarin orange due to his color and because he looks like an orange when curled up. He was named “station master” of Ciaotou Sugar Refinery Station in September 2020, and has since become famous. With Kaohsiung MRT’s branding, along with the release of a set of cultural and creative products, station master Mikan
Eleven people, including actor Darren Wang (王大陸), were taken into custody today for questioning regarding the evasion of compulsory military service and document forgery, the New Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office said. Eight of the people, including Wang, are suspected of evading military service, while three are suspected of forging medical documents to assist them, the report said. They are all being questioned by police and would later be transferred to the prosecutors’ office for further investigation. Three men surnamed Lee (李), Chang (張) and Lin (林) are suspected of improperly assisting conscripts in changing their military classification from “stand-by
LITTORAL REGIMENTS: The US Marine Corps is transitioning to an ‘island hopping’ strategy to counterattack Beijing’s area denial strategy The US Marine Corps (USMC) has introduced new anti-drone systems to bolster air defense in the Pacific island chain amid growing Chinese military influence in the region, The Telegraph reported on Sunday. The new Marine Air Defense Integrated System (MADIS) Mk 1 is being developed to counter “the growing menace of unmanned aerial systems,” it cited the Marine Corps as saying. China has constructed a powerful defense mechanism in the Pacific Ocean west of the first island chain by deploying weapons such as rockets, submarines and anti-ship missiles — which is part of its anti-access/area denial (A2/AD) strategy against adversaries — the
RSS