Ivy League student, 21, died after drinking Panera lemonade ‘with more caffeine than 3 Red Bulls’: lawsuit
An Ivy League student with a heart condition died after drinking Panera Bread’s Charged Lemonade — which has more caffeine than three cans of Red Bull, according to a lawsuit filed by her grieving family.
Sarah Katz was a 21-year-old University of Pennsylvania student last year when she suffered cardiac arrest hours after purchasing the lemony beverage, according court documents filed in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas on Monday.
Katz, who had a heart condition called long QT syndrome type 1 — a heart-signaling disorder where heartbeats can be fast and chaotic — avoided energy drinks per her doctor’s recommendation, the wrongful death lawsuit, first obtained by NBC News, said.
Her college roommate, Victoria Rose Conroy, also told NBC that Katz “was very, very vigilant about what she needed to do to keep herself safe.”
“I guarantee if Sarah had known how much caffeine this was, she never would have touched it with a 10-foot pole,” Conroy told the outlet.
Katz ordered the large “Charged Lemonade” as part of a meal at a Philadelphia Panera location on Sep. 10, 2022, without realizing it contained 390 milligrams of caffeine — more than three times the 111 milligrams of caffeine found in a standard 12-ounce can of Red Bull.
According to the complaint, Katz “consumed the Panera Charged Lemonade, reasonably confident it was a traditional lemonade” or an “electrolyte sports drink containing a reasonable amount of caffeine safe for her to drink.”
On that same day, Katz “suffered a cardiac arrest” while dining with friends at a restaurant in her apartment building, according to the complaint.
The family’s attorneys accuse Panera Bread of failing to provide warning “of any potentially dangerous effects…on blood pressure, heart rate, and/or brain function,” the complaint stated.
Panera Bread advertised the drink as a “plant-based and clean” beverage “with as much caffeine as our Dark Roast coffee,” according to the filing.
The beverage which Katz consumed also includes guarana extract, which is a stimulant, as well as the equivalent of nearly 30 teaspoons of sugar, according to the complaint.
Katz’s family alleged in the complaint that Panera included the beverage as part of its “Sip Club” in which customers are urged to “drink unlimited Panera Charged Lemonade every day.”
“We were very saddened to learn this morning about the tragic passing of Sarah Katz, and our hearts go out to her family,” a Panera spokesperson told The Post.
The spokesperson said the company “strongly believe[s] in transparency around our ingredients.”
“We will work quickly to thoroughly investigate this matter,” the company rep told The Post.
According to the Food and Drug Administration, adults should have no more than 400 milligrams a day, which is equivalent to about four or five cups of coffee.
However, depending on factors such as body weight, medications and individual sensitivity, “too much” caffeine can vary from person to person, the FDA warned.
