Mum-of-three Samantha Sharpe (Picture: BPM)

A mum started to experience blackouts after becoming addicted to energy drinks.

Samantha Sharpe, 33, had to be fitted with a pacemaker when doctors discovered she had a second degree heart blockage after she passed out one day.

They could not be certain the sugary beverages had caused the heart condition but told her it certainly did not help.

She also suffered with kidney stones and was on the verge of Type Two diabetes due to the amount of sugar she was consuming.


Ms Sharpe, from Hamilton, has now warned others to limit the amount of energy drinks they have as it could be detrimental to their health.



She said: ‘My sister, who is a nurse, said the addiction is worse than that of heroin, which I can understand because I needed it to help me be awake.’

Samantha Sharpe would drink up to six cans of energy drink each day (Picture: BPM)

Ms Sharpe started drinking up to six energy drinks each day due to her hectic lifestyle.

She added: ‘I have three children and I work so it was daily life that pushed me to drinking the energy drinks.

‘I work in the evenings so it got me through the day. It woke me up and got me a bit hyper.

‘I also had eight months off work, which didn’t help how many I was drinking.’

She said whenever she drank the sugary beverages her heartbeat would increase rapidly and she would get palpitations

The working mum also suffered from headaches, felt grumpy all the time and had insomnia.

Despite all these negative effects she said she could not stop drinking the energy beverages because she was addicted to them.

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Ms Sharpe is doing much better since having a paceaker fitted Picture: BPM)

Ms Sharpe now has a ‘new lease of life’ after getting a pacemaker fitted through a vein in her leg and also giving up energy drinks.

She can no longer stand it when people drink too many energy drinks, especially children.

Ms Sharpe added: ‘It breaks my heart when I see kids doing it.

‘There is an age limit, but I still see mums buying it for their children.

‘The effects of energy drinks need to be advertised more.’

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