Woman Sues Panera Over Its Charged Lemonade, Saying She Suffered Heart Injury

A Panera Bread location in Pearland, Texas.

Panera Bread and its Charged Lemonade are once again headed to court. This week, a Rhode Island woman filed a lawsuit alleging that the highly caffeinated beverage caused her to develop long-term heart problems. The suit follows two wrongful death claims brought against the chain eatery last year by families of the deceased.

As first reported by CBS Moneywatch, the 28-year-old plaintiff, Lauren Skerritt, filed her civil lawsuit Tuesday in Delaware, where the company is incorporated. The suit alleges that Skerritt purchased and drank two and a half Charged Lemonades at a Panera in Greenville, Rhode Island on April 8, 2023. Skerritt reportedly began to experience palpitations and dizziness soon after. The next day, she felt so sick that she visited the emergency room at the Rhode Island Hospital, where she was treated for atrial fibrillation, or an irregular heartbeat.

Read more

• This Stomach-Churning Conservative May Be Donald Trump's VP Pick

• What! Republican Chair Throws Famous Black Congresswoman Out Of Hearing

• These Are The Cars You'd Buy Today To Last 250,000 Miles

• Hellblade II and Alan Wake 2 Are Signs of A Worrying Trend

• I Cut The Roof Off Of My Porsche 996 Turbo And I Might Throw Up A Little

Panera has denied culpability in Brown and Katz’s deaths, but it appears to have since lowered the caffeine content of the drinks, which also were rebranded as Charged Sips sometime last summer. On Panera’s website, a single-serving beverage is now said to contain between 124 and 236 milligrams of caffeine, depending on the size and flavor. The company has also added what it calls “enhanced” disclosures that tell consumers to drink these beverages in moderation and that the drinks are “not recommended for children, people sensitive to caffeine, pregnant or nursing women.”

Panera has not yet responded to the claims in this latest lawsuit, CBS Moneywatch reported. Gizmodo reached out to the company for comment but did not receive a reply by the time of publication.

More from Gizmodo

• The NFL buying ESPN is the final frontier in the effort to kill sports journalism

• Donkey Kong Coaster Jumps The Rails, Just Like The SNES Games

• Sports Illustrated lays off entire staff

• Here Are Even More Racist Texts From the White California Cop Who Shot A Black College Student

• Even If You Own A Subaru WRX, Don't Drift To Pass Semi Trucks In The Snow

Sign up for Gizmodo's Newsletter. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.