Monster Beverage Corp. (MNST)’s
energy drinks have been cited in the deaths of five people in the past
year, according to incident reports that doctors and companies submit to
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The reports said the victims consumed Monster drinks prior to their deaths, Shelly Burgess, an FDA spokeswoman, said today in a phone
interview. The FDA said the incidents, which are voluntarily reported,
are considered to be allegations, and no conclusion is drawn until an
investigation is completed. Shares of Corona, California-based Monster
fell the most since 2008.
The FDA reports are being used by parents
in Maryland who sued Monster last week, claiming the drinks led to
caffeine toxicity that killed their 14-year-old daughter. Senator Dick Durbin,
an Illinois Democrat, is asking the FDA to consider caffeine limits on
energy drinks after emergency room visits involving such products jumped
10-fold from 2005 through 2009.
“FDA continues to evaluate the emerging
science on a variety of ingredients, including caffeine,” Burgess said
in an earlier e-mail.
The five death reports, and a sixth in
2009, were among 37 adverse reaction reports since 2004 that mentioned
Monster drinks, according to a log of incidents that health
professionals, companies and the public voluntarily recorded with the
FDA. The agency has said it’s working on draft guidelines that would
ensure energy drinks are safe.
