Teenager, 18, sues Panera Bread claiming its highly caffeinated Charged Lemonade caused him to go into cardiac arrest inside a movie theatre - just weeks after controversial drink was axed over spate of deaths

A Pennsylvania teenager is suing Panera Bread claiming consuming one of their highly caffeinated Charged Lemonade drinks caused him to go into cardiac arrest.

Luke Adams, 18, consumed the drink along with a chicken sandwich before going to a movie theater with friends around 7pm on March 9.

Just two-and-a-half hours later, a friend that Luke was with found him to making strange noises and discovered him to be in sudden cardiac arrest.  

Luke Adams, 18, claims a highly caffeinated drink caused him to go into cardiac arrest

Luke is pictured alongside Doctor Tim Muchnok,  an emergency medicine physician, who helped save Luke's life after he went into cardiac arrest

Fortunately, two nurses and a cardiologist were also in the theater at the time and began performing CPR on him while an automated external defibrillator was brought in and used to shock him. 

Despite an irregular rhythm, Adams' heart was pumping again and he was rushed to hospital. 

Luke then had seizures while in the ER and was placed in intensive care where he was intubated and placed on a ventilator according to the the lawsuit filed on Monday in federal court in Philadelphia. 

In Luke's medical records doctors specializing in cardiology and neurology noted a 'heavy caffeine intake' as a possible trigger for the cardiac arrest and subsequent seizures and specifically mentioned the Charged Lemonade drink.

No other potential structural abnormalities or genetic conditions were found, the doctors said.

'Luke is not the first cardiac arrest from drinking this, but heis the luckiest as he survived and the other two did not,' wrote his mother, Lisa Braverman Feyes, in a Facebook post.

'Our God is an awesome God for sure …2 nurses (Dawn Saula )and a Cardiologist( Dr Francis Ergina) just so happened to be at the movie theater to initiate CPR on my son.

'Lukes best friends acted quickly by yelling for help, laying him down on the ground and running for the AED,' she explained. 

Braverman and her husband are both paramedics and heard the call for their son come over the radio. 

'As most of you know my husband Scott Feyes and I are long time paramedics and ER Registered Nurses…never in a million lifetimes did I ever dream that what we have done so many times on strangers would be happening to my newly 18 year old precious son. 

'Being EMS providers our radio is always on in case there is a fire or EMS call that we need to go on. When we heard "18 year old male at the movie theater unresponsive". my world stopped because in my heart I knew it was going to be my son,' she wrote. 

'Please share far and wide that Panera charged lemonade can KILL you ! It is no joke. How many lives need to be lost before there is a change made?' 

A regular size of Charged Lemonade, which is 20 ounces, has 260 milligrams of caffeine

The lawsuit claims that Luke was not aware that the Charged Lemonade was a super energy drink with high amounts of caffeine, sugar and guarana.'

The states the drink contains 390 milligrams of caffeine without ice and 237 mg of caffeine with ice - the Food and Drug Administration's total daily recommended limit is 400 mg.

A large, 20-ounce dark roast coffee at Panera has 268 mg of caffeine, by comparison.

The lawsuit alleges Luke's cardiac arrest was caused by ventricular fibrillation — a type of heart arrhythmia that can be triggered by caffeine. 

'As a result of drinking Panera Charged Lemonade, Luke's life has been impacted physically, emotionally, socially and financially,' the lawsuit said. 

Luke has had to have a defibrillator implanted to ensure he does not go into cardiac arrest again but the entire incident has left him with PTSD and anxiety.

Luke Adams is now suing Panera Bread after he consumed a Charged Lemonade. The teenager says he has PTSD and anxiety while Panera has now discontinued the drink

'Panera Charged Lemonade is defective in design because it is a dangerous energy drink,' the lawsuit said.

Luke stresses in the suit that he never had any health issues and always consumed a limited amount of caffeine.

His lawsuit includes claims for negligence, liability and misrepresentation alleging how Panera did not identify Charged Lemonade as an energy drink containing stimulants, rather that it was sold as being 'naturally flavored,' and 'plant based.'

Earlier this month, Panera announced it was discontinuing the Charged Lemonade drinks, which have been around for two years. 

The company's 'Charged Sips' which includes three different flavored drinks, come in a 64 fluid ounce container that contains 1615 milligrams (mg) to 2155 mg of caffeine, according to the company's website.

The company also said it plans to introduce new drinks with low-sugar and low-caffeine options.

The beverage line has been the subject of multiple lawsuits over the past few months by people who have said the drinks caused health problems.

So far, they have been linked to two wrongful death lawsuits.

One suit was filed by the family of Sarah Katz, a 21-year-old Ivy League student with a heart condition, who died in September 2022.

Sarah Katz (pictured) died on September 10, 2022, just hours after she consumed a large Charged Lemonade from a branch of Panera Bread in Philadelphia

Katz had been diagnosed with the heart rhythm condition long QT syndrome as a child, which caused her heart to beat irregularly (arrhythmia). 

She had managed her condition by taking medication and limiting caffeine, according to legal documents. 

The second was by the family of a 46-year-old Florida man, David Brown, who died in October.

Brown suffered a cardiac arrest and died on October 9 after drinking three Charged Lemonades at his local Panera.

He was found unresponsive on the sidewalk and pronounced dead on the scene in Fleming Island.

Brown's family said Brown had high blood pressure and didn't drink energy drinks, but believed Charged Sips were safe because they weren't advertised as energy drinks.

David Brown, 46, suffered a cardiac arrest and died on October 9 after drinking three Charged Lemonades at his local Panera believing them to be regular lemonades

Brown had a habit of ordering three drinks in a row, according to the lawyer representing the family, and had drunk three charged lemonades with his dinner the day of his death. 

The lawsuit detailed how Brown had ordered at least seven Charged Lemonades over a two-week period before he died. 

A third lawsuit was filed in January by Lauren Skerritt, a 28-year-old from Rhode Island who claimed the beverage left her with 'permanent' heart injuries.

After news of the first lawsuit broke, Panera put more detailed disclosures in all of its restaurants and on its website warning customers to consume the drinks in moderation.

The chain also stated that they were not recommended for children, pregnant women, breastfeeding moms or people sensitive to caffeine.

Panera have not said whether the drinks were being discontinued because of the lawsuits or health concerns.