People who consume energy drinks frequently are at a higher risk of heart problems, a new study finds.

Energy drinks have grown in popularity, especially among teenagers and young adults in the United States. However, many health experts have questioned the benefits of these beverages stating that it may have serious health implications. A new study throws more light on this topic, suggesting that people who consume energy drinks frequently are at a higher risk of heart problems.

"So-called 'energy drinks' are popular in dance clubs and during physical exercise, with people sometimes consuming a number of drinks one after the other. This situation can lead to a number of adverse conditions including angina, cardiac arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat) and even sudden death," study author Professor Milou-Daniel Drici said in a press statement. "Around 96 percent of these drinks contain caffeine, with a typical 0.25 litre can holding 2 espressos worth of caffeine. Caffeine is one of the most potent agonists of the ryanodine receptors and leads to a massive release of calcium within cardiac cells. This can cause arrhythmias, but also has effects on the heart's abilities to contract and to use oxygen. In addition, 52 percent of drinks contain taurine, 33 percent have glucuronolactone and two-thirds contain vitamins."

For the study, researchers analyzed adverse events reported to the A.N.S.E.S, the French agency for food safety between Jan. 1, 2009 and Nov. 30, 2012. Some 15 specialists including cardiologists, psychiatrists, neurologists and physiologists contributed to the investigation. The findings were compared to published data in sciene literature.

The researchers found that consumption of the 103 energy drinks in France increased by 30percent between 2009 and 2011 up to over 30 million liters. The leading brand made up 40 percent of energy drinks consumed. Two-thirds of drinks were consumed away from home. The researchers also noted that among the 257 reported adverse events, 95 had cardiovascular symptoms, 74 psychiatric and 57 neurological, all sometimes overlapping. Cardiac arrests and sudden or unexplained deaths occurred at least in 8 cases, while 46 people had heart rhythm disorders, 13 had angina and 3 had hypertension.

"We found that 'caffeine syndrome' was the most common problem, occurring in 60 people. It is characterized by a fast heart rate (called tachycardia), tremor, anxiety and headache," the study authors said. "Rare but severe adverse events were also associated with these drinks, such as sudden or unexplained death, arrhythmia and heart attack (myocardial infarction). Our literature search confirmed that these conditions can be related to consumption of energy drinks."

Previous studies have also highlighted that drinking an energy drink mixed with alcohol is riskier for health than drinking alcohol alone. A Daily Mail report compares mixing alcohol and energy drinks to mixing "cocaine to heroin." Teens that consume such concoctions typically drink 36 percent more than their peers and report twice as many weekly episodes of drunkenness.

Findings of the current study were presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress, August 31, 2014.