An Ivy League student with a heart condition died after drinking 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, a 21-year-old 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.
In a statement Monday afternoon, a Panera spokesperson said: “We were very saddened to learn this morning about the tragic passing of Sarah Katz, and our hearts go out to her family. At Panera, we strongly believe in transparency around our ingredients. We will work quickly to thoroughly investigate this matter.”
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Katz had purchased a charged lemonade from a Panera Bread in Philadelphia on Sept. 10, 2022, according to the suit. She went into cardiac arrest hours later, said her roommate and close friend, Victoria Rose Conroy.
For more on this story go to NBCNews.com.
