In Weslaco, Texas, the word energy drink has become part of a grieving family’s attempt to explain an unthinkable loss. Larissa Nicole Rodriguez, a 17-year-old college-bound high school student, died in October, and her family now says a popular beverage helped trigger the fatal heart condition that ended her life.
What the family says happened
The family filed a wrongful death lawsuit in Hidalgo County District Court against distributors of Alani Nu energy drinks, saying Rodriguez died from an enlarged heart caused by ingesting large amounts of caffeine. Benny Agosto Jr., the family’s attorney, said at a news conference that the Hidalgo County medical examiner determined her cause of death was “an enlarged heart due to stress and large amounts of caffeine. ”
Agosto said Rodriguez drank Alani Nu energy drinks often and that the product carried “inadequate warnings about the serious cardiac risks that this product brings. ” He said the medical examiner tested for other substances and found none. “Everything was negative, not one trace of alcohol or anything. The only thing she had in her system was caffeine, ” Agosto said.
The family says Rodriguez had no pre-existing heart conditions or heart-related problems. Agosto described her as “full of life, full of love, smart, academic and with a bright future, ” adding that she played tennis and was a cheerleader. “Her life was cut short, ” he said, standing with her parents and relatives.
How a single teen death became a larger warning
The case turns one family’s loss into a wider question about what consumers, especially teenagers, are told about high-caffeine products. The lawsuit says Rodriguez consumed one or more cans of the drink in the days leading up to her death and that the beverage contains 200 mg of caffeine per 12-fluid-ounce can in the U. S.
The complaint also points to the age of the teen at the center of the case. It says Rodriguez was 17 years old and argues that energy drinks do not belong in the diet of children and adolescents. In the same filing, the family says the labels did not provide a maximum daily consumption limit or a prominent warning that multiple cans may be dangerous.
, Celsius Inc., which owns Alani Nu, said it is “saddened by this loss, and our thoughts are with the family. ” it takes product safety seriously and believes consumers should have clear information about what they are drinking. It said Alani Nu energy drinks disclose 200 mg of caffeine on the can and include label warnings that the product is not recommended for children, people sensitive to caffeine, pregnant women, or women who are nursing.
Who is being sued, and what comes next?
The family’s lawsuit names Glazer’s Beer and Beverage and Glazer’s Beer and Beverage of Texas, the distributors that sold the product. Agosto said the suit focuses on distributors because “they’re the ones that receive it, distribute it and put it all over the place, and they also fail to give any warnings. ”
He also said more defendants could be added as the case moves through discovery, and that could include Celsius. For now, the company is not a defendant. Glazer’s Beer and Beverage did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The case has also drawn attention because of the caffeine amount involved. The Alani Nu can contains 200 mg of caffeine, while the total daily maximum amount of caffeine recommended for healthy adults is 400 mg, and children and teenagers ages 12 to 17 should have less than 100 mg of caffeine per day, Columbia University Irving Medical Center. In that context, the family’s claim places one teenager’s death inside a broader debate about how much warning is enough when a product is marketed and sold across ordinary stores and ordinary routines.
For Rodriguez’s family, the question is not abstract. It returns to a cheerleader who was active, ambitious, and preparing for college. It returns to a teen whose parents and relatives stood beside an attorney as he said their daughter’s life was cut short. And it leaves a familiar can with an unfamiliar weight: for this family, energy drink is no longer just a label on a shelf, but the center of a search for accountability.
Image alt text: energy drink lawsuit and teen heart death case in Texas
