A leading politician has called for an investigation into 'PRIME' energy drink after it was revealed to have an alarming amount of caffeine.
The drink, which is promoted by high-profile YouTubers KSI and Logan Paul, contains 200mg of caffeine per can, which is around twice the amount of caffeine found in Red Bull.
Prime Energy states that it is not recommended for children under the age of 18 as it is the equivalent of drinking six cans of Coke.
But now US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has called for an investigation and demanded the country’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) look into the drink.
The Democrat alleges that Prime Energy was packaged and marketed "in near identical form" as a caffeine-free drink from the brand.
Have you or your children had a bad experience with Prime? Email webnews@mirror.co.uk
In a letter to the FDA he said: “A simple search on social media for Prime will generate an eye-popping amount of sponsored content, which is advertising.
"This content and the claims made should be investigated, along with the ingredients and the caffeine content in the Prime energy drink.”
He also tweeted: "The FDA [Food and Drug Administration] must investigate PRIME for its absurd caffeine content and its marketing targeting kids on social media."
Some parents had unknowingly purchased the caffeinated drink for their children, according to Mr Schumer.
He warned parents of the drink, stating it "not an outfit, or a toy — it’s a beverage" and said "parents beware because it’s a serious health concern for the kids it so feverishly targets.”
The drink became an online sensation in 2022 after Logan Paul and KSI, who have nearly 48 million YouTube followers between them, launched the caffeine-free Prime Hydration drink.
Fans were keen to get their hands on the drink as thousands of people across the world could be seen rushing to supermarkets to find the drink.
This led to the drinks being sold out in some shops, with some fans selling bottles for thousands of dollars online.
The caffeinated drink was launched in January this year and was promoted as being sugar-free and vegan.
However, a warning on the cans state it is not recommended for children under the age of 18, anyone who is sensitive to caffeine, and pregnant women or women who are breastfeeding.
There have been some schools around the world who have been forced to send out warnings to parents over the Prime drinks and even banned them altogether.
One school in Newport, Wales, UK, sent a message to parents warning them not to confuse the caffeinated and non-caffeinated versions of the drink after a schoolchild fell ill outside of school hours.
In addition, the Maryborough State High School in Queensland, Australia also issued a ban on the energy drinks.
The school said in a Facebook post: "There are some new energy or hydration drinks that have recently hit the market... some of which have 4 TIMES the caffeine or stimulant as 'regular' energy drinks.
""These can cause significant concerns in students with (potentially unidentified) health issues."
