6-Year-Old Boy Suffers Heart Attack And Dies After Consuming Monster Energy Drink

After reportedly consuming Monster Energy drink, a six-year-old boy has died.

The incident took place on April 16 when Francisco Cervantes was visiting his grandmother's house in Matamoros in north-eastern Mexico, reported Mirror. The thirsty boy saw a glass on the table filled with the energy drink and drank it quickly. Soon after drinking it, he started to experience discomfort.

He was taken to the local Alfredo Pumarejo Hospital by his relatives. The youngster was diagnosed with intoxication. Later, he was announced as brain death. He reportedly had a heart attack.

Initially, his mother, Jessica, refused to allow him to be disconnected from his artificial life support machine, so he spent six days in the hospital in a coma. Later the mother thanked "all those who came to offer us their support." She said that unfortunately her son "couldn't take it anymore," and they were "going to see about the funeral expenses to give him his Christian burial."

It is not known if Cervantes had any known pre-existing health conditions.

Gloria Molina Gamboa, the head of the Ministry of Health in Tamaulipas, said that the causes of his death could not be defined immediately, Infobae reported. She shared that various medical diagnoses and studies were being carried out to determine what caused his demise. To carry out the relevant investigations, the case had been turned to the Federal Commission for the Protection against Health Risks, she added.

The US Food and Drug Administration said in a 2019 study that there had been 34 deaths attributed into energy drinks. Due to this it warranted investigation into their safety. "Energy drink consumption has been associated with cardiac arrest, myocardial infarction, spontaneous coronary dissection, and coronary vasospasm," said the study, titled "Impact of High Volume Energy Drink Consumption on Electrocardiographic and Blood Pressure Parameters: A Randomized Trial."

Young children have been advised by the National Health Service to not consume any kind of energy drink as they contain high levels of sugar and caffeine. According to Express, the UK government has confirmed it will ban the sale of energy drinks to kids under the age of 16. The move comes after a government consultation on proposals in 2021. They addressed increasing support for restricting sale of energy drink in the UK.