Firefighters are warned to lay off energy drinks [Updated]

On the cover of the daily "Incident Action Plan" for the Station fire is an unusual warning: "No energy drinks."

Even though firefighters expend a tremendous amount of energy, officials said high levels of caffeine in many energy drinks can be dangerous.

"It's been a concern," said Nathan Judy of the U.S. Forest Service. "When they drink those things, it dehydrates them."

Judy said that during a previous fire some years back, a firefighter consumed four cans of Red Bull in one day and went into diabetic shock. Since then, fire officials have warned crews to re-energize in other ways, he said.

"Drink water, drink water, drink water," Judy said. He also said that the meals served to firefighters each day are high in calories because firefighters are "going through calories like crazy on the line."

Breakfast this morning at the Hansen Dam fire camp included scrambled eggs with cheese, sausage, hash browns and grits. Judy said lunches are hearty, sometimes consisting of two sandwiches, and that dinners often include lots of pasta, chicken and other meat.

Instead of energy drinks, officials ask firefighters to think about replacing salt, sugar, water and calories as a way to gain a boost. Posters bearing an outline of a slim, energy drink can with a big red strike through it are scattered around the camp.

Mark Whaling of the Los Angeles County Fire Department said firefighters do other things in preparation for work on wildfires as well. They include keeping their socks dry and sanding, oiling and reshaping the wooden ends of their hand tools so they are comfortable for long stretches of labor.

[Updated at 6:22 p.m.: Paul Yoffee, a spokesman for Red Bull, said there are no medical findings that connect someone drinking four cans of Red Bull and going into diabetic shock.

"There are no dangers or drawbacks associated with the consumption of Red Bull, and we are confident in the safety of our product.... We absolutely agree that people need to hydrate themselves, as Red Bull is a functional drink and not a thirst-quencher. Thus, individuals should make sure that they drink lots of water when engaging in physical activity and drinking Red Bull."]

—Ari B. Bloomekatz at Hansen Dam

Photos: Firefighter Ryan Doyle of the Mill Creek Hot Shot crew, top, breaks for a drink of Gatorade after cutting a fire line at the end of Oak Crest Drive in Sierra Madre. At right, another crew member clutches a water bottle while taking a rest.

Credit: Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Nicole]

Seems to me with such a wicked fire things could be a lot worse - I think these guys are doing a great job!!

[Ariana Kat]

DRINK COCONUT WATER!!

fresh coconut water, straight from a young coconut is a great way to get SUPER HYDRATED. it has tons of electrolytes. while it doesn't have the caffeine of energy drinks, its all natural, has calories, high in potassium, low in sodium and again....great for re-hydration!!

Young coconuts are pretty cheap, and I know many asian food markets in Los Angeles stock them.

thanks to the firefighters!! keep on chargin!

[Tumblemark]

I have seen such misinformation repeated frequently during this fire, by reporters who should check their facts. It is not just wrong, but potentially life threatening. Caffeinated energy drinks and alcoholic beverages like beer do cause dehydration, but there's more to the story.

Sweat contains around a gram of salt per liter (quart), usually more. Firefighters sweat at least a liter per hour, often several times that. They need to replace as much water and salt as possible, that's about 3/4 of what they lose in sweat. The rest of the loss MUST be replaced during meals; more is better.

Gatorade is far from optimum, but better than nothing. Ideally it should be diluted with about 1/3 more water and a half teaspoon of salt added (search "sports drink osmolality"). Drinking lots of plain water only can lead to hyponatremia (search "hyponatremia"), a serious condition. I am shocked that medical professionals don't know this and guide the firemen (and the public). Someone should tell Nathan Judy.

So consume sports drinks, not just plain water. No caffeine or alcohol.

[SC]

So let me get this straight, Red Bulls high caffeine content caused this guy to go into DKA. Could it have been that he had DIABETES? Energy drinks leading to dehydration yes ...jitters yes... DKA no. Terrible story.

[Steven Youra]

Good information, but the photo & caption are misleading. The fellow pictured is drinking the right stuff. Gatorade is not an "energy drink." In fact, unlike such drinks, it can help to replace needed salts and it has no caffeine. (Thanks to the firefighters for all of their great work!)

[Jeremy]

Why did the LA Times update the article with a response by a Red Bull spokesperson? Did Red Bull threaten them legally? Obviously Red Bull is going to deny that their drink causes diabetic shock because it's bad for their business. But it DID cause diabetic shock in someone, but they don't agree with those findings because they're not "medical" He also said they are no dangers or drawbacks? The crash you get at the end isn't a drawback? Or do they deny that happens too?

[Decemberbear]

These poor guys--carrying around their gear and wearing their heavy uniform in the 100 plus degree heat!!!

[shyeaah]

This is silly. Caffeinated drinks contain more than enough water to make up for the small amount of dehydration from the caffeine in them.

What they should be concerned about is electrolyte levels.

[Mark]

It looks like the guy in the picture is drinking Gatorade (you can't see the label). Gatorade has no caffeine, so having that picture with this story is misleading

[Richard Chang]

I learned from my CPR class that consuming excessive amount of so-called "energy drinks" with its high caffeine content can cause sudden and dangerous blood vessel constriction that had resulted deaths in young athletes who were otherwise healthy.

[Alhambran]

Sounds like the typical corporate bulls--- response from the Red Bull rep.
However, the firefighter SHOULD have known (and it should've been in their training) that drinking that crap should not be used when dehydrated. In fact, there are several countries that have actually banned that drink due to health concerns.

But when you have such an aggressive "macho man" ad campaign like Red Bull has, you're going to sucker in some poor guy who had a clock ticking somewhere inside. My sympathies to his family.

[scum1]

Load of crap. The sugar was the problem not the caffeine. A Coke or any soda would have had the same effect including a caffeine free coke. It was the sugar! To top it off a cup of coffee has more caffeine than a red bull and I am sure they have a coffee pot at the station. If he had drank a sugar free red bull he would have been fine. I am tired of people making Red bull and other energy drinks a scape goat for stuff. On top of all that Red bull is not even a very strong energy drink.

[Jennifer]

I second coconut water. It has natural electrolytes, more than sports drinks like Gatorade. Just check out this quote:

"In World War II and the Vietnam War, coconut water saved many soldiers’ lives. Doctors used coconut water as an intravenous solution to prolong life on the battlefield when IV solutions were in short supply. Coconut water was also injected directly into the blood stream to prevent dehydration."

http://www.examiner.com/x-21032-Jacksonville-Beach-Food-Examiner~y2009m9d3-Coconut-water-refreshes-with-amazing-benefits

[Shawn]

Folks......get one thing straight.

The article is speaking of ENERGY drinks, not sports drinks.
Although the pictures are misleading, it weems that many of you have been tricked into thinking that they are talking about the sports drinks.

Although these ENERGY drinks provide a quick boost of energy, they should not be used as a means to maintain the high level of hydration and chemical balance required by the body during this type of demanding physical activity.

The proper combination of meals, water, and yes, even SPORTS drinks will provide the required amount of hydration, nutrition, and energy to make it through the grueling work, and no ENERGY drinks will be necessary.

[joseph p.martino]

re: some energy drinks.
some colored energy drinks contain yellow 5 (tartazine) a very allergic food
color. my experience was a allery attack that caused a constant runny nose.
i was drinking this energy drink for a month before not knowing of the problem.
i was taking allergy pills and antibiotics. my doctors did not realize the problem the energy drink was causing this problem. when i stoped the energy drink my the runny nose disappeared.
google: (tartazine) for full allergy details of the many problems tarazine causes
especially with asthmatics and aspirin intolence etc.

[Cato]

There's nothing misleading about the photo; the caption says he's drinking Gatorade. The problem is the caption should be UNDER the photo, not under the story.

As for the comment by SC, if you go back read the story carefully you'll see that the claim that drinking four cans of Red Bull caused diabetic shock was ATTRIBUTED to a statement BY A U.S. FOREST SERVICE OFFICIAL. Same goes for you Mark. Read the whole story, not just the big words.

Shawn gets it right.

There are better products than Gatorade on the market, but they are not cheap.

[J. Charles]

Consuming caffeine-laden drinks, as this article explains, is very dangerous. Why, under the very scary headline, is there a picture of a firefighter drinking a NON-caffeinated Gatorade? That's the GOOD stuff that's replacing lost fluids. One picture is worth thousand lost sales and you've just put a unintentional "hex" on the good stuff.

[Fitness Nerd]

Wow!!!!! Water for hydration and healthy food for energy! Who would have thought of that!?!

It just drives me nuts that our country continues to look at nutritionally void drinks as viable food sources. This stresses me out. I need another cup of coffee.