Panera Bread is now facing a lawsuit after its popular energy drink "Charged Lemonade" allegedly killed a 21-year-old student in Philadelphia.
The victim's family claimed their daughter didn't know that the Charged Lemonade she ordered was a heavily caffeinated energy drink. Here's what the plaintiffs argued and want from American bakery-cafe fast food restaurant.
Panera Bread's Energy Drink Allegedly Kills Student
According to CNN Business' latest report, Sara Katz, a 21-year-old student of the Ivy League, died after drinking Panera Bread's Charged Lemonade.
Authorities said Sarah suffered cardiac arrest while at a Panera Bread restaurant. Medical responders tried to transport her to the nearest hospital.
Unfortunately, she experienced a second cardiac arrest, leading to her death. Because of this, Sarah's family filed a lawsuit in Philadelphia on Monday, Oct. 23.
The Daily Beast reported that the incident happened on Sept. 10, 2022. One of her friends who was with her before she died said that the 21-year-old student, who had a heart condition, was very vigilant about what she needed to do to keep herself safe.
"I guarantee if Sarah had known how much caffeine this was, she never would have touched it with a 10-foot pole," said Sarah's friend.
Based on the lawsuit filed by the Katz family, Panera Bread's Charged Lemonade contains a dangerous amount of caffeine, around 390 milligrams per drink.
The plaintiffs argued that this caffeine exceeds the standard content in combined Monster and Red Bull energy drink cans.
With this argument, the Katz family accused the American bakery-cafe fast food chain of wrongful death. Sarah's parents are currently seeking punitive damages and compensatory.
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Was Panera Bread's Energy Drink the Main Cause?
Based on the victim's autopsy report, Sara Katz died because of cardiac arrhythmia caused by long QT syndrome (LQTS). Medical examiners explained that LQTS is a disorder that can lead to irregular and fast heartbeats.
They added that this heart condition can be life-threatening. Numerous health studies already proved that energy drinks can trigger high blood pressure, irregular heart rhythms, and other heart disease risk factors.
This is what the Katz family's lawsuit claims. The plaintiffs' attorney, Elizabeth Crawford, said the Charged Lemonade is mixed in-house by store employees.
This means that there's a chance that the caffeine content in some Charged Lemonade drinks was not controlled properly.
Crawford added that the American bakery-cafe restaurant also offers a Panera Sip Club membership, which allows customers to have free in-store refills.
The attorney said this fact makes it impossible to determine how much Sarah Katz drank.
"We want to make sure that the drink includes a warning, or is taken off the shelf. It's a dangerous energy drink and it's not advertised that way. We want to make sure this does not happen to someone else," argued the lawyer.
