Wife Hears Husband Struggling For Air Just One Month After Passing Physical With 'Flying Colors,' Sends Urgent Warning

Jan 22, 2019 by apost team

Regular health checks are recommended by medical professionals so that we can catch any potential issues that might happen early. But unfortunately, a clean bill of health doesn't always mean that we won't run into complications.  

In a tragic story from 2011, mechanic John Reynolds passed his physical exam with "flying colors," but soon after wound up having a cardiac arrest and sadly passed away. Doctors believe energy drinks to be part of the reason he suddenly went into cardiac arrest that fateful day. Ever since, his widow, Cassondra Reynolds, is making it her mission to spread the urgent warning about energy drinks and just how dangerous they can be.

Speaking with Inside Edition, Cassondra explained that John "would usually grab an energy drink on his way out the door. You know, on his way to work." Despite having had a physical the month before, John came home from work one day gasping for air and soon after went into cardiac arrest. After speaking with the head of cardiology at the hospital, Cassondra was told:

"This isn't normal. Your husband's heart is really strong. He has the heart of like a 25-year-old."

But when the topic of energy drinks came up, the doctor explained that even just one or two energy drinks a day are enough to disrupt a person's heart. Since energy drinks are considered dietary supplements, their ingredients are not regulated by the FDA. What's more, one energy drink can contain as much caffeine as 100 cups of coffee, creating a potentially dangerous situation.  

Tragically, John wasn't lucky. Despite living an active lifestyle and being given a clean bill of health just one month earlier, John suffered brain damage and was pronounced brain dead, leading Cassondra and his family to turn off his life support 14 days after he initially went into cardiac arrest. Cassondra told Yahoo:

"When he was pronounced brain dead, I let my children come and visit him to say their goodbyes. I asked the nurse to remove as many wires as possible so that they wouldn't be scared."

Last year, Cassondra decided to turn her personal loss into a warning to others when she launched an awareness campaign. Its aim is to spread awareness of the dangers of energy and pre-workout drinks that are widely available everywhere. Cassondra told Inside Edition that around the time of John's death, his doctor spoke to her about energy drinks and said, "people that are drinking these drinks are literally playing Russian roulette with their life." 

Speaking with Yahoo, Cassondra said:

"I want people to know how dangerous these drinks are and I need people to speak out about losing their loves ones because it happens all the time, you just don't hear about it."

The Facebook group she started, which is called "Energy Drink and Pre-Workout Awareness" currently has over 14,800 members. She told Yahoo:

“I don’t want anyone to go through what me and my children have had to go through these past nine years, it doesn't get any easier you just learn how to cope with it."  

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What happened to John is not unique. Another story that could have ended very similarly is that of Kevin Carley. In prime physical condition, he worked out regularly and had no history of health problems. Then, one day he collapsed on the floor of his YMCA gym.

What had started as a typical Saturday morning nearly ended up in tragedy. Carley had made a pre-workout energy drink and headed to the gym. After 15 minutes on a treadmill, he started to feel lightheaded. Soon after, he broke out in a cold sweat. The last thing he remembers before passing out is struggling to breathe. The next thing he remembered is waking up in an intensive care unit the following Monday.

Carley's wife, Daphne Buxman-Carley, says it was a pre-workout energy drink that almost killed her husband. Carley was put into a medically induced coma after being admitted to the hospital, where doctors told Buxman-Carley they discovered a green liquid in her husband's stomach that was consistent with energy drinks. 

Dr. Peter Weiss, a cardiac physiologist, spoke to Inside Edition about such cases. Although he didn't look after either of these two men, he explained that the time Carley drank the energy drink probably played a role in what transpired. Since our bodies are on a 24-hour cycle, we naturally produce more adrenaline and cortisol early in the morning, two hormones that are known for increasing our heart rate.

Drinking an energy drink while our hearts are already working overtime can result in a cardiac event. If you add strenuous physical activity to the mix, you have a recipe for disaster. Thankfully, Carley made a full recovery.   

Have you or anyone you know ever had an adverse reaction to an energy drink? Let us know and be sure to pass this on to help spread the word about the dangers of these popular beverages. 

Our content is created to the best of our knowledge, yet it is of general nature and cannot in any way substitute an individual consultation by your doctor. Your health is important to us!