8 litres of coke a day

Stuff reports:

The sister of a woman whose partner claimed she died because she drank too much Coca-Cola says she does not hold the company responsible.

However, the woman’s partner and mother-in-law say warning labels should be put on the drink.

An inquest for mother-of-eight Natasha Harris was held in Invercargill yesterday. Ms Harris died on February 25, 2010.

Otago-Southland coroner David Crerar did not make any preliminary findings after yesterday’s inquest, however pathologist Dan Mornin said he believed Ms Harris died of cardiac arrhythmia and it was likely she was suffering from hypokalemia (low potassium) along with caffeine toxicity, which could have contributed to her death.

When asked by Mr Crerar whether it was probable her consumption of Coca-Cola had caused the hypokalemia and arrhythmia, Dr Mornin said yes, along with poor nutrition and caffeine.

At the inquest, Ms Harris’ partner, Chris Hodgkinson, said his partner consumed between 4.5 and 8 litres of Coke a day for several years before her death, and he believed this had contributed to her death.

His mother, Vivien Hodgkinson said after the inquest that warning labels should be put on Coke products.

Why just on Coke? If you drank eight litres of anything a day (even water), I’d say you would not feel too good. How can you actually drink 8 litres a day?

Drinking up to eight litres of any liquid a day can kill you, regardless of how much sugar or caffeine it contains, a Wellington dietician says.

Foodsavvy’s Sarah Elliott said that when “extreme” amounts of fluid were consumed regularly, the body’s cells could rupture.

“Ten litres of fluid a day could kill you, no matter what it is.”

Exactly.

Specialists recommend that humans do not drink more than four litres of liquid a day. Natasha Harris’s daily intake of Coca-Cola would have given her up to a “shocking” 3424 calories and 864 grams (or 3 1/2 cups) of sugar, Mrs Elliott said.

It is very sad for anyone to die at a young age of 30. But blaming it on coke is silly.

I suspect Harris was morbidly obese. If you are needing to drink so much fluid, you probably have diabetes. And having had eight children doesn’t help either.