Teen Went Into Cardiac Arrest After Drinking Panera’s Highly Caffeinated Charged Lemonade, Lawsuit Alleges

• The lawsuit alleges that Luke Adams, 18, drank a large Mango Yuzu Citrus Charged Lemonade and suffered a heart attack hours later
• The teenager later had two seizures in the hospital, the lawsuit added
• Panera recently confirmed to PEOPLE that Charged Lemonade drinks have been removed from its menus

Panera is facing another lawsuit over its highly caffeinated Charged Lemonade drinks, which the brand recently discontinued after multiple lawsuits over the drink.

Attorneys for Pennsylvania teenager Luke Adams filed a lawsuit Monday, May 20, alleging the 18-year-old went into cardiac arrest hours after drinking Panera’s Charged Lemonade.

The lawsuit alleges that Adams, a high school student, purchased a large Mango Yuzu Citrus Charged Lemonade served to him by an employee at a Panera store in Monroeville, Penn.

A few hours after drinking the lemonade, according to the complaint, Adams went to see a movie, and after about two and a half hours, one of his friends noticed him “making strange noises.” The attorneys wrote that after Adams went into cardiac arrest, two nurses and a cardiologist who happened to be attending the movie began performing CPR on him.

He was then rushed to the hospital, and on the way he received shocks from a defibrillator. Later, he suffered two seizures, according to the lawsuit.

Panera’s premium lemonades are being discontinued after multiple pending lawsuits related to the deaths

Adams’ attorneys included his medical notes in court documents, which said his cardiac arrest may have been triggered by “heavy caffeine intake” and that the seizures were the result of “an unclear etiology, possibly related to cardiac arrest secondary to caffeine intake from Panera Charged Lemonade.” ”

The lawsuit also alleges that Adams purchased the drink not knowing “that Charged Lemonade is a super energy drink.” The restaurant lists a large Charged Lemonade as containing 237 milligrams of caffeine with ice.

PEOPLE has reached out to Panera for comment.

“Luke Adams’ case is a tragic example of why Panera Charged Lemonade is an inherently dangerous product and should be removed from the market,” Adams’ attorney told PEOPLE in a statement, echoing the claims made in the lawsuit. “Clearly, the product ‘warning’ was ineffective. Luke was a healthy 18-year-old with no health problems before he drank a large Panera Charged Lemonade and went into cardiac arrest.”

Charged Lemonade dispenser photo taken in March 2023.

Smith/Gado/Getty Collection

Panera customer goes viral after realizing their lemonade contains more caffeine than 4 espressos

Since it was introduced to the Panera menu, the lemonade energy drink has been involved in a number of accidents and deaths.

In October, the parents of 21-year-old Sarah Katz sued the restaurant chain, claiming the highly caffeinated drink played a role in her death in September 2022.

The teenager was diagnosed with long QT syndrome type 1 when she was 5 years old and allegedly bought Panera’s Charged Lemonade “reasonably believing that it was a traditional lemonade and/or electrolyte sports drink containing a reasonable amount of caffeine safe for her.”

While some Panera locations responded to Katz’s death by posting warnings about the amount of caffeine in the drink near its dispensers, the grocery chain faced additional legal trouble in December 2023, when the family of 46-year-old Florida resident Dennis Brown sued Panera alleging that his death in October 2023 he drank three cups of Charged Lemonade.

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In January 2024, Lauren Skerritt, a 28-year-old athlete and occupational therapist, filed a complaint against the restaurant claiming that Charged Lemonade caused her “permanent heart damage” despite having “no underlying health problems.”

That same month, Panera removed Charged Lemonade self-serve fountains from some of its locations.

In May 2024, Panera confirmed to PEOPLE that the drink had been permanently removed from the menu, citing a “recent menu transformation.”

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education