Global Courant
An influencer-backed energy drink that has gone viral among kids is under scrutiny from lawmakers and health experts for its potentially dangerous caffeine content
FILE – A child holds a PRIME hydration drink prior to a baseball game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Arizona Diamondbacks, March 31, 2023, in Los Angeles. An influencer-backed energy drink that has become virally popular among kids is under scrutiny from federal lawmakers and health experts for its potentially dangerous caffeine content. Senator Chuck Schumer on Sunday, July 9, 2023, called on the Food and Drug Administration to investigate Prime. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, file)
The associated press
NEW YORK — An influencer-backed energy drink that has become virally popular among kids is under scrutiny from lawmakers and health experts for its potentially dangerous caffeine content.
On Sunday, Senator Charles Schumer called on the Food and Drug Administration to investigate PRIME, a liquor brand founded by YouTube stars Logan Paul and KSI that has become something of an obsession among the influencers’ legions of young followers.
“One of summer’s most popular status symbols for kids isn’t an outfit or a toy — it’s a drink,” says Schumer, a New York Democrat. “But buyer and parents beware, because it is a serious health problem for the children it is so feverishly targeting.”
Backed by two of YouTube’s best-known stars, PRIME was an instant sensation when it launched last year, sparking long lines in supermarkets and reports of resale markets in schoolyards.
Advertising themselves as sugar-free and vegan, the neon-colored cans are among a growing number of energy drinks with increased caffeine content; in the case of PRIME, 200 milligrams per 12 ounces, equivalent to about six Coke cans or nearly two Red Bulls.
That high level led to a ban in some schools in the UK and Australia, where some pediatricians warned of potential health consequences for young children, such as heart problems, anxiety and digestive problems.
Company representatives, meanwhile, have defended the product as clearly labeled “not recommended for children under 18”. They sell a separate sports drink known as PRIME Hydration that contains no caffeine at all. PRIME representatives did not immediately return a request for comment.
But in his letter to the FDA, Schumer claimed there was little noticeable difference in the online marketing of the two drinks — leading many parents to believe they were buying their kids a juice only to end up with a “cauldron of caffeine.”
“A simple social media search for Prime will generate a dazzling amount of sponsored content, which is advertising,” he wrote. “This content and the claims made should be investigated along with the ingredients and caffeine content in the Prime energy drink.”
