KUSA — In honor of the upcoming 9Cares Colorado Shares Food and Clothing Drive, Wednesday’s edition of Fact or Fiction with 9NEWS Medical Expert Dr. Comilla Sasson deals with food.
And let’s start with something that is bad news if you REALLY love coffee …
1) Can you overdose on caffeine? FACT
But you would have to drink a lot of caffeine!
Toxic levels are around the 3,000 mg mark for adults and less for children. Your case of the jitters can start around 400 mg in adults. High doses of caffeine can cause irregular heartbeats and possibly a fatal heart rhythm.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends children less than 12 years old have no caffeine at all, and children 12 to 18 have 100 mg or less per day.
Adults, meanwhile, are recommended to have 400 mg or less per day. Here is some caffeine content for common drinks:
An 8 oz cup of coffee can range from 100-250 mg of caffeine. Watch those cup sizes closely. A grande coffee is 16 oz (and double the amount of caffeine).
A bottle of Mountain Dew has 90 mg of caffeine.
An Energy drink can be from 50 to 300 mg of caffeine.
2) Pregnant women can’t eat sushi, but they can eat deli sandwiches? FICTION
As if pregnancy wasn't difficult enough! Say no to the deli sandwiches and cold cuts unless you microwave them first until they are hot and steaming (URL:https://www.acog.org/Patients/FAQs/Listeria-and-Pregnancy). Listeria can be found in cold cuts, unwashed raw produce and vegetables, unpasteurized milk and soft cheeses. Some other foods to avoid during pregnancy:
Undercooked meats
Raw fish and shellfish
Raw or undercooked eggs, homemade mayonnaise, hollandaise etc.
Fish with mercury (such as canned tuna)
3) You can’t eat too much black licorice? FICTION
There is in fact too much black licorice. Large amounts (2 oz every day for two weeks) can lead to an irregular heartbeat from low potassium due to a chemical found in black licorice called glycyrrhizin.
