Panera Bread Charged Lemonade Drink Contains So Much Caffeine It Allegedly Killed Someone

Panera Bread is currently embroiled in a wrongful death lawsuit after a 21-year-old woman drank Panera's Charged Strawberry Lemonade product and had a cardiac arrest at the restaurant, reportedly dying shortly after.

A large Panera Charged Lemonade has a whopping 390 milligrams of caffeine in it, as much as three and a half Red Bulls.

The young woman who drank the beverage and died shortly after notably had a heart condition. Her family claims that Panera mislabelled the product, and had their daughter known about the amount of caffeine in it, she wouldn't have ordered the lemonade.

According to an official statement from the company, Panera is "saddened" by the death. But online, backlash is growing against the popular fast-casual bakery and restaurant with some sharing past experiences with the drink that felt dangerous.

Some posters are comparing the caffeine content of the Charged Lemonade to other famous caffeinated products. In particular, the Charged Lemonade has inspired comparisons to Four Loko, with some even sharing plans to mix the Charged Lemonade with vodka in order to approximate the effects of the original Four Loko blend, which was removed from the market for consumer safety reasons.

Many criticized Panera's aggressive marketing campaign for the Charged Lemonade, which involved giving out free refills and a monthly membership plan that allowed unfettered access to the highly caffeinated beverage.

The Charged Lemonade was first introduced in 2022 and flabbergasted posters on TikTok who found themselves jittery after trying the drink.

https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7236464456950091050

https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7254615135715691818

But all the attention to the caffeinated beverage has also led some users to say they want to try it for themselves.