College student who drank ‘Charged Lemonade’ dies – IOTW Report

College student who drank ‘Charged Lemonade’ dies

NBC: An Ivy League student with a heart condition died after she drank Panera Bread’s Charged Lemonade, a large cup of which contains more caffeine than cans of Red Bull and Monster energy drinks combined, according to a lawsuit.

The legal complaint, which was filed Monday morning in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas and was first obtained by NBC News, calls the beverage a “dangerous energy drink” and argues that Panera failed to appropriately warn consumers about its ingredients. 

The suit was filed on behalf of the parents of Sarah Katz, 21, a University of Pennsylvania student who had taught CPR in underserved communities and had been a research assistant at a children’s hospital. Katz had a heart condition called long QT syndrome type 1 and avoided energy drinks at the recommendation of her doctors, according to the filing.  more

24 Comments on College student who drank ‘Charged Lemonade’ dies

  1. Straight from Panera website: ‘with about as much caffeine as our Dark Roast coffee.’
    And if you get the 30 oz, that is a lot. If she was avoiding energy drinks she either wasn’t looking or someone else gave it to her and she didn’t ask.

    13
  2. She worked at a hospital, knew her condition, and chose to drink a dangerous substance for her condition which killed her?

    Wonder how much damage she did to patients at the hospital…

    13
  3. Sorry, I’ve been reading too many physics articles. I thought the word charged meant the lemonade had too many protons in it making it too acidic, thereby burning her esophagus and stomach.

    7
  4. @general malaise — And for a moment there, I thought it meant lemonade you weren’t allowed to pay cash for.

    I have just one question about the legal/ethical position that Panera is liable for the death of someone who was sufficiently intelligent and aware to know that what she bought and consumed voluntarily was potentially harmful to her. That question is: How deep are Panera’s pockets?

    9
  5. ^^^ From what little information there was in the link, it appears that Panera’s liability is minimal. The product was adequately advertised on the menu and they are not responsible for the medical conditions of the customer.

    Sure, they will pony up some cash to make it all go away, but not enough for the shareholders to squawk.

    8
  6. Dark roasted coffee has less caffeine than light or medium roasted coffee. The more you roast, the more you burn off the caffeine.

    Remember JOLT cola? It had twice the sugar and twice the caffeine. How much is twice the caffeine? 71 mg.

    Grab a piece of MEG (military energy gum). It has 100 mg per piece. If that’s not too much for our service men, it’s not too much for me! lol.

    I suppose everyone reacts differently. Personally I can drink a pot of coffee and go to sleep right afterwards. I’ve even measured my pulse after sucking back straight cold brew and it doesn’t budge.

    IMO the sugar plus caffeine is the issue. Or just sugar alone. Sugar is always the problem.

    6
  7. It’s not just the caffeine they put into these energy drinks.
    It’s the toxic cocktail of exotic ingredients they use.
    The list on the cans is three paragraphs long.

    I can drink a pot of coffee in an hour, no problem.
    I had 4 oz of an energy drink that fucked up my nervous system for several hours.
    Never again.

    6
  8. Loco, and that’s three as of today, tomorrow, who knows?

    Aside from that bullshit Alvin Bragg case, I always thought this one was a slam dunk for Trump, no way they could convict him of his state of mind, of him honestly believing he got hosed in Georgia and wanted a better accounting of the ballots. This is not criminal. But every co-defendant that flips with the promise to co-operate with Fani Willis lessens Trump’s chances of beating the charges.

    5
  9. ” But every co-defendant that flips with the promise to co-operate with Fani Willis lessens Trump’s chances of beating the charges.”

    Wrong, Fanni’s 0 for 4 on conspiracy/RICO.

    7
  10. Rich, I see it as “every man for himself” in these cases.
    Everyone knows that Trump will look out for himself and they need to do the same.
    Anything that keeps them out of prison and racking up large lawyer bills they will likely go for.
    Asking someone to take a bullet for you is all well and good and patriotic but let’s be real here…

    5
  11. Anonymous Tuesday, 24 October 2023, 12:21 at 12:21 pm

    Millions got vaxxed and died. Where’s that lawsuit?
    ————-

    If I were Panera, I’d subpoena her doctor records, and see how many jabs she got. Then counter sue showing it was the jab and not lemonade.

    12
  12. FFS, she has a heart condition and teaches CPR so she knows more than a little about her condition and she isn’t more careful in what she puts in her body? This reminds me of the person who asked the server if there were nuts in the pesto. If I had the chance of a fatal reaction to nuts, I would not eat any pesto that I hadn’t made myself or rely on the server’s info.

    I don’t think Panera is responsible but I do question why Panera would sell charged lemonade in the first place.

    6

Comments are closed.