What are the effects of caffeine on the mammalian circulatory system?

Question

A friend of mine told me an anecdote about his mother, who drank too much caffeine, to the point she became hypotensive and would pass out. Because caffeine acts as a stimulant, I'm assuming the decreased blood pressure was some kind of tolerance effect.How exactly would caffeine have disrupted her circulatory regulation and caused her normal pressure to decrease?

Answer 1

It does not seem hypotension is a know part of the Caffine Toxodrome (the constellation of possible adverse and overdose effects). As a stimulant it should increase blood pressure if anything.

It sounds more likely to me that she had taken so much that she may have taken so much as to cause an irregular heartbeat - which might look like hypotension. It would be to over-stimulation though.

This may indicate she has some underlying heart disease. So pass on that she should be sure to tell her doctor about it so he can check it out, and not to do it again in the meantime.