Who would have thought lemonade could be so deadly? But Panera Bread‘s Charged Lemonade has already racked up a body count due to its caffeine content and is, naturally, proving somewhat controversial.
The beverage is a caffeinated lemonade that comes in different fruity flavors including Blood Orange, Strawberry Lemon Mint, and Mangi Yuzu. According to Panera’s website, each serving of the beverage contains anywhere from 157 to 237 milligrams of caffeine depending on the flavor.
The drink is a favorite of members of Panera’s Sip Club, a monthly subscription that allows customers to redeem self-serve drinks at any Panera location every two hours. That’s a whole lot of Charged lemonades in a day.
In the past few months, two people have passed away and their families have linked the company’s Charged Lemonade to their loved one’s deaths. The first was a 21-year-old University of Pennsylvania student, who bought a lemonade in 2022 and died of cardiac arrest just hours later.
According to NBC News, the second person died after drinking three lemonades and then suffered cardiac arrest. The 46-year-old man reportedly had a mild intellectual disability and a chromosomal deficiency disorder. His high blood pressure stopped him from drinking energy drinks regularly. His serving could have been more than 700 milligrams of caffeine.
The amount of caffeine that is served in Panera’s charged lemonade is greater than a can of a Monster energy drink or multiple shots of espresso. According to the Food and Drug Administration, more than 400 milligrams of caffeine a day can be dangerous even to a healthy adult.
A main concern from both parties involved in lawsuits is that the Charged Lemonade doesn’t come with a warning label or disclosure of any kind. However, when customers try to order on the app it does warn them about how much caffeine is in the drink and warns that it isn’t safe for children, people sensitive to caffeine, or pregnant and nursing mothers.
People have taken to Twitter to share their thoughts on the Charged Lemonade, some going as far as to say that they feel the customers were not at fault and even calling for it to be regulated or even taken off of the menu completely.
There has yet to be any progress on either of the lawsuits against Panera Bread but it has certainly drawn attention to potential issues with the menu item. Should you decide to give the controversial beverage a try, consume with caution.