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FORGET drugs, booze and fags – meet the man who is addicted to Irn-Bru.

Dad-of-three Andrew McSherry almost died from heart disease after drinking eight litres of the fizz every day for 20 years.

He was so dependent on Scotland’s other national drink, he would suffer withdrawal symptoms if he didn't down a two-litre bottle during the night.

Andrew, 51, who spent £60 a week on his Irn-Bru habit, had to have a quadruple heart bypass last year after his excessive sugar intake damaged his arteries.

The former labourer has not touched a drop of his favourite drink in more than a year for fear that his addiction could kill him.

Andrew, of Cumbernauld, said: “I was an Irn-Bru addict. For 20 years, I went through eight litres a day. It’s a wonder I didn’t turn orange.

“I used to keep a two-litre bottle beside my bed and if I didn’t get up in the night to drink it, in the morning I would feel really ill.

“I’d be sweating, shaking and feeling sick, just like a junkie in need of a fix.”

Andrew, who has spent around £30,000 on his Irn-Bru habit, had no idea his life was in danger until he got his cholesterol checked and it was three times the healthy limit.

Then, last year, he and wife Margaret, 47, got the shock news that his arteries had become so clogged that he needed a heart bypass.

He said: “I remember the first thing I bought off the trolley when I was back on the wards was a bottle of Irn-Bru.

“No one had guessed it was my sugar intake that caused the problem.”

It was Andrew’s GP who finally asked him about his drinking habits and told him his Irn-Bru addiction was killing him.

Andrew said: “I didn’t realise I was drinking the equivalent of 150 teaspoons of sugar a day. I knew then it was time to stop.

“I didn’t want my sons to end up without a dad. Being alive is more important than a bottle of juice.” Andrew admits he still craves the drink but said: “It’s not allowed in the house. My boys are like the Irn-Bru police and they won’t let me near a drop of it.”

His incredible story features in the new BBC Scotland series Addicted to Pleasure, hosted by actor Brian Cox. Andrew appears in the first episode Addicted to Sugar with tobacco, alcohol and opium to follow in the coming weeks.

A spokeswoman for Irn-Bru makers AG Barr said: “Irn-Bru can be enjoyed in regular and sugar-free variants as part of a balanced diet and a healthy lifestyle. We would never advocate over-consumption of any one product.”

Addicted to Pleasure is on BBC1 at 9pm tomorrow.