Settlement reached after Panera’s Charged Lemonade allegedly causes death
Key Takeaways
Panera Bread has settled a lawsuit related to its Charged Lemonade beverage, a highly caffeinated drink that was reportedly linked to the death of a college student in 2022.
Panera’s now-discontinued drink isn’t the only caffeinated beverage with health risks, especially considering the FDA does not require products to list the amount of caffeine a food or drink contains—which may surprise some of your patients in light of the recent lawsuits.
Panera Bread has reached a settlement in a lawsuit over its Charged Lemonade beverage, which allegedly led to the death of former University of Pennsylvania student Sarah Katz.[]
According to the now-settled lawsuit, Katz went into cardiac arrest hours after she consumed a Charged Lemonade beverage in 2022. The suit alleges the ingredients in the Charged Lemonade—notably, high amounts of caffeine—may have aggravated Katz’s heart condition, long QT syndrome, and caused her death.
The suit also alleges that Panera did not properly label its Charged Lemonade, leaving consumers unaware of its high caffeine content and the associated dangers. Due to Katz’s heart condition, her family says that she would not have consumed the Charged Lemonade had she been aware of its risks.
How ingredient labels omit the truth
Not exclusive to Panera’s caffeinated lemonades, beverages with too much caffeine can pose health risks to consumers. Highly caffeinated beverages may also be incorrectly labeled, downplaying caffeine content or risks.
The US FDA loosely regulates caffeinated beverages by requiring products with added caffeine to list it as an ingredient on their labels.[] However, the agency does not require products to list the exact amounts, nor do they require products that naturally contain caffeine, such as coffee, tea, or guarana, to explicitly list it as an ingredient on their labels.
With this in mind, Ilan Shapiro, MD, MBA, FAAP, FACHE, a pediatrician and Chief Health Correspondent and Medical Affairs Officer at AltaMed Health Services, suggests that people who are nervous about caffeine avoid any suspicious-looking sugary beverage and instead stick to water.
Still, “just drinking water” can be easier said than done. In addition to making personal decisions to protect your health, Dr. Shapiro says that public education on caffeine’s risks could be crucial in protecting people’s health. Framing caffeine risks as being similar to those of alcohol—in terms of how high quantities of either substance can be toxic to the body—could be a way to help people understand its dangers.
“We all know that alcohol has limits; if not, it will work as a toxin in our body,” Dr. Shapiro says. “This is the same with high quantities of caffeine or other chemicals that our body is not used to. That is why a combination of policy and awareness in our communities should be enacted.”
Since the Panera settlement, an FDA spokesperson wrote in an email to MDLinx that the agency “has not released any plans to update caffeine regulations at this time.” However, they added that “the FDA does not need to set an official limit to take action against a manufacturer that produces unsafe products."
Leslie Young, MD, a pediatrician and primary care physician at MemorialCare Medical Group in Lakewood, CA, says that “it’s imperative to know the ingredients” in anything you eat or drink. Especially when the ingredient is a stimulant, like caffeine, it can be important for consumers to know the amount they are consuming so that they can make educated decisions about risks and side effects.
“Caffeine at high doses can trigger side effects, just like any other stimulant medication,” Dr. Young says. “Even at relatively low doses, caffeine can interfere with sleep and have a diuretic effect.” Caffeine can also have a psychotropic and cardiac effect when consumed in large quantities, he adds, noting that these risks can be present for people with or without heart conditions. For people with heart conditions, exactly how caffeine may interfere with their health can
Can you still buy Charged Lemonade?
Panera started phasing out its Charged Lemonade flavors from stores in May 2024, following the lawsuit filed by Katz’s family.[] According to NBC News, a Panera spokesperson said the phase out was due to a “menu transformation.”
Though Charged Lemonades are no longer available, they are still listed on the Panera website, with a warning that the drinks are “NOT RECOMMENDED FOR children, people sensitive to caffeine, pregnant or nursing women.”[]
A total of four lawsuits have been filed against Panera over its Charged Lemonade.[] Two of the suits, including the case involving Katz, allege that the drink was responsible for customers’ deaths. The other two allege that the drink caused previously healthy customers to develop permanent heart injuries.
While the details of the recent settlement have not been reported publicly, a lawyer at Philadelphia-based law firm Kline & Specter—the law firm representing the plaintiffs in all four cases—told NBC News on Monday that “the matter has resolved.”
What this means for you
Caffeinated beverages can pose health risks, especially for some people with heart conditions. Unfortunately, because not all caffeinated beverages are properly labeled, avoiding these risks can be easier said than done. Doctors should encourage people to drink water when possible and to advocate for more education and policy changes regarding the health risks of caffeine.