Alani Nu

Promotional image of Alani Nu cans

Alani Nu, an energy drink brand, popular in middle and high school students, has recently drawn attention for a wrongful death lawsuit filed against a Alani Nu after a Texas teenager, who drank “at least one Alani Nu a day” died from an enlarged heart, an effect of frequent caffeine consumption.

12-oz Alani Nu energy drinks have about 200 Mg of caffeine, double the recommended amount for teens. Critics of Alani Nu claim that the energy drink does not have sufficient warnings about the caffeine amount, that the energy drinks have too much caffeine to be sold to younger people, and the bright colours, packaging design, and the flavours help market the drink to teens, and make it look more like a soft drink than an energy drink, deceiving buyers, and especially teens, making the drink dangerous, as critics say. 

On the other hand, Alani Nu supporters claim that the 200 mg caffeine content is properly labelled on the nutrition facts section of the can, and that the drink is mostly intended for adults, not kids or teens.

If Alani Nu loses the lawsuit, they would likely have to reformulate the product, with less caffeine, resulting in a different taste, add labels on the can more prominently displaying the amount of caffeine, or warnings about the amount of caffeine where the Alani Nu energy drinks are sold.