<p>I rarely drink caffeine. Was sick of drinking water trying to keep hydrated in this horrible heat. So I had a large ice tea from McD’s. Ended up with symptoms that mirrored a stroke! Ended up calling 911 and going to the ER.
I guess that is what I get for usually being substance free (including caffeine). Body couldn’t handle it. I basically overdosed on caffeine and caused myself to become dehydrated.
So just a reminder in this extreme heat- DRINK NON CAFFEINATED BEVERAGES. Boy did I learn my lesson!</p>
<p>OMG…are you ok?
My daughter came home with a low grade fever yesterday as well; I asked her what she drank late in the day yesterday…she answers, “pepsi”…fever was down this morning and she was fine after a cool shower and lots of water…hopefully she’s ok today…</p>
<p>hope you are feeling better!!</p>
<p>That sounds awful, holliesue! I was once in Arizona in 100+ degree heat. I was swimming in the university pool, walking back and forth from my friends’ house. (I remember that it was so hot and dry that my arms would dry off during each stroke, while they were out of the water, so that I felt the cold shock of re-entry each time!) While passing a convenience store, I noticed a sign for Squirt soda. I had loved it during my childhood in MI, but hadn’t had it in years since I moved to the east coast. I stopped in and bought several, and drank them right away. I went into a state that I can only describe as sugar shock.</p>
<p>I am telling my kids to drink lots of Gatorade & Propel. I keep a 1 liter bottle on my desk at work that I fill with water & add a Propel pack (typically for 0.5 liter, but I prefer it weaker) to take away the boredom of plain water.</p>
<p>I am still weak today! My d is working at a sleepaway camp in the Hudson valley. Hoping she is keeping herself hydrated!</p>
<p>We keep the powdered packets of Propel in lots of flavors. We keep bottled water that we get from Costco etc. When the kids are finished with the bottle they fill it up with water from the fridge door which is filtered and add another packet of Propel. Since they only use one bottle a day & refill it cuts down on the cost and garbage. We like Propel as it’s sugar free, but more importantly you can get vitamin enhanced and ones with antioxidants. We keep green tea and lemonaide for guests.</p>
<p>We started using these when the boys were involved in their EC which keeps them on a competition floor away from food and water for extended periods of time. We keep the propel in the ‘pit’ to keep them hydrated. It is much better than plain water. It has revived many a ‘wilted’ adult as well. I really used to take it for granted, but not anymore.</p>
<p>NOTE: For anyone prone to headaches or migraines in the heat, I have recently learned that staying hydrated really helps. The propel seems to be really much more helpful than plain water.</p>
<p>There was just an article somewhere about caffeine and dehydration. My BP is very sensitive to caffeine, so Holliesue, between the dehydration and maybe an elevated BP you were probably all out of whack! Bless you and hope you are feeling better.</p>
<p>holliesue…I am glad you are feeling better. I can’t stand this heat and I am trying to stay indoors as much as possible. Stay well and drink plenty!!</p>
<p>I thought I read recently that normal amounts of caffeine do not lead to dehydration and CAN be used as hydrating fluids. I can understand how it could be a problem if you were not at all used to caffeine, though.</p>
<p>^^^^^I agree that a normal dose of caffeine should not have caused such an extreme reaction. OP, you must have already been quite dehydrated for one glass of iced tea to give you “stroke-like” symptoms. This is not at all a common reaction to a small dose of caffeine such as you described. I would be sure to see your doctor for a complete physical soon to make sure there are no underlying issues of which you are unaware. Especially as you continue to feel weak today.</p>
<p>Sounds very scary indeed. Hope you get better soon.</p>
<p>& dont drink wheat grass if you have even driven by a starbucks in the last week.
( it cleanses your system and seems to push all residual caffiene thru at once!)</p>
<p>Most people are not hydrated- I don’t blame them- who wants to run to the restroom constantly?</p>
<p>Our water tastes good, but I like to use a squirt of lemon or [url=<a href=“http://www.emergenc.com/]Emergen-C[/url”>http://www.emergenc.com/]Emergen-C[/url</a>], instead of gatorade type stuff.</p>
<p>The packets are easy to carry around and come in lots of flavors.</p>
<p>If you have caffeine, you need to compensate water loss by drinking even more water. I never drink caffeine when I am thirsty, it is useless for that. Caffeine is to wake you up and coffee is the best for it, not tea. Both coffee and tea have goodies in them that fight free radicals in our bodies, but the best of them is dark chocolate. I also have to be very careful with coffee and can have it only 3 times / week. My stomach cannot tolerate tea at all.</p>
<p>Some people are extremely sensitive to caffeine. One of my former coworkers would feel sick every time Stabucks mixed up his decaf drink. Unfortunately, he was too addicted to Stabucks to brew his own, proven decaf coffee. I heard of a guy who was developing a caffeine test strip that would let anyone test their “decaf” beverage for the presence of caffeine:</p>
<p>[Chemist</a> Creating Caffeine Dipstick - cbs2chicago.com](<a href=“http://cbs2chicago.com/watercooler/caffeine.coffee.caffeine.2.268008.html]Chemist”>CBS Chicago - Breaking News, First Alert Weather, Exclusive Investigations & Community Journalism)</p>
<p>I’m not sure if this is on the market yet.</p>
<p>Doesn’t decaf actually have just a bit of caffeine nonetheless?</p>
<p>Thanks everyone. I pretty much gave up on the caffeine years ago because I have always been very sensitve to it. I don’t know why I drank the very large icetea! I was probably already dehydrated as I was in a hearing for a couple of hours previous and hadn’t drank my normal amount of liquids.</p>
<p>Decaf has lots of caffeine. I cannot drink it after 2pm, it will affect my sleep. I do not know exact numbers of content and I am exceptionally sensitive to caffeine.</p>
<p>I use caffeine to boost my energy and wake me up, at least 3 mornings / week. Morning coffee positively affects my evening workouts and dark chocolate definitely helps my swimming.</p>
<p>Yes, decaf has some caffeine. Not what I would call a lot. Unless you’re unusually sensitive to it.</p>
<p>And some caffeinated beverage is OK and is a plus in terms of hydation up until about 16 ounces, for most people. After that amount, the hydrating effects of the beverage become a negative as it acts as a diuretic.</p>
<p>Recent studies have shown that caffeine does not have a significant diuretic effect, actually it is no more than water.
However, it can affect heart rate and blood pressure, cause jittery feelings.
I too am concerned that one large glass of iced tea caused stroke like symptoms…
How well did they rule out stroke or TIA?
Our hospital is a certified stroke center and since we have achieved certification we are diagnosing and treating strokes more often and more quickly. Some hospitals haven’t gotten on the band wagon so to speak of early stroke detection.
I second the advice to see your primary physician.</p>
<p>Keymom-will do!</p>
<p>I mentioned this to my H, former doc, who basically made the same cautionary comment as keymom. I had also read that caffeinated beverages are not really dehydrating, since they accompany the caffeine with liquid, and was concerned that this might be something else. He concurred.</p>