Jobless 26-stone mother is going blind after drinking 28 cans of Red Bull energy drink every day

A jobless 26-stone mother is going blind after drinking 28 cans of Red Bull a day.

Lena Lupari, 26, from Newtownabbey in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, has gained so much weight from having seven litres on a daily basis that her brain has swollen.

The mother-of-three, who consumed more than 3,000 calories from the drink every day, was unaware of the damage she was doing until she collapsed in June.

Doctors discovered she had developed a condition known as Idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH), which they said was a result of her being overweight. 

Ms Lupari, who was spending nearly £6,000 of her benefits every year - or £450 of her £1,800 monthly hand-outs - on the high-calorie energy drink, says she was addicted.

'I used to drink 28 cans of Red Bull in a day and I'd only have a meal at night but it would usually be something fast-food like a takeaway or a packet of pasta,' she said.

'I've got three young children, one with special needs, and didn't have time to make anything. 

'I'd been suffering from migraines and headaches for about five years but I just ignored them and took painkillers.

'Then my vision went and I couldn't even lift my head off the bed and I ended up in hospital for six days.'

Medics says she has to lose seven stone in order to keep the symptoms at bay and since she was hospitalised on June 18, she has entirely cut out Red Bull from her diet and lost two stone.