Michigan won't be filing a lawsuit against 5-hour Energy
According to Crain’s Detroit Business, the state of Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette will not be following suit with fellow attorney generals from the states of Washington, Oregon, and Vermont in filing a lawsuit against 5-Hour Energy. 5-Hour Energy is an energy drink company.
Its parent company, Living Essentials, is based in Farmington Hills, Michigan. The attorney generals from the states of Washington, Oregon, and Vermont have filed lawsuits at their states’ level with the Consumer Protection Agencies.
In the lawsuits, the attorney generals allege that 5-Hour Energy falsely advertised that its energy drinks are safe to drink and will increase a person’s energy.
Bob Ferguson, who is the attorney general for the state of Washington, expressed concerns that 5-Hour Energy drinks contain large amounts of caffeine.
Ferguson is quoted in a July 17, 2014, press release as saying, “We believe the ‘energy’ provided by 5-hour ENERGY® products is derived solely from caffeine, not from vitamins and amino acids as their ads claim.”
According to Elizabeth Lee of WebMD, the experts say that the caffeine is providing “most of the kick” in the energy drinks.
Lee also says that the experts warn that drinking large amounts of caffeine everyday can result in a person becoming nauseated and having an increase heart rate and blood pressure.
In 2012, the New York Times reported that the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) launched an investigation into the heart attacks, convulsions, and 13 deaths that occurred after the individuals had allegedly taken 5-Hour Energy shots.
And when asked about the FDA’s investigation, Manoj Bhargava, CEO of 5-hour Energy, told CBS News Medical Corresspondent Dr. Jon LaPook that he stood by the company’s products.
Bhargava told LaPook, “I would not sell a product that my family wouldn’t use.” However, Oregon Attorney General Ellen F. Rosenblum and Vermont Attorney General Bill Sorrell alleged in their respective lawsuits that 5-Hour Energy doesn’t provide the scientific data to support the company’s claim that its products are safe and that other ingredients, besides caffeine, increase a person’s energy.
In a July 17, 2014, press release, Rosenblum said that 5-hour Energy couldn’t advertise its “product as being effective” without “sufficient evidence” supporting the company’s “advertising claims.”
Sorrell stated in a July 21, 2014, press release that a “concentrated shot of caffeine” was the “only ingredient” providing the energy boost, and that 5-hour Energy could not advertise its products without “sufficient evidence to support such claims” about the ingredients and effectiveness of its product.
Crain’s Detroit Business said that Melissa Skabich, who is a spokeswoman for 5-Hour Energy, dismissed the recent lawsuits as an attempt to “shakedown” the company for its money.
According to Crain’s Detroit Business, the Associated Press quoted Skabich as saying, “When companies are being bullied by someone in a position of power, these companies roll over, pay the ransom and move on. We’re not doing that.”
Its parent company, Living Essentials, is based in Farmington Hills, Michigan. The attorney generals from the states of Washington, Oregon, and Vermont have filed lawsuits at their states’ level with the Consumer Protection Agencies.
In the lawsuits, the attorney generals allege that 5-Hour Energy falsely advertised that its energy drinks are safe to drink and will increase a person’s energy.
Bob Ferguson, who is the attorney general for the state of Washington, expressed concerns that 5-Hour Energy drinks contain large amounts of caffeine.
Ferguson is quoted in a July 17, 2014, press release as saying, “We believe the ‘energy’ provided by 5-hour ENERGY® products is derived solely from caffeine, not from vitamins and amino acids as their ads claim.”
According to Elizabeth Lee of WebMD, the experts say that the caffeine is providing “most of the kick” in the energy drinks.
Lee also says that the experts warn that drinking large amounts of caffeine everyday can result in a person becoming nauseated and having an increase heart rate and blood pressure.
In 2012, the New York Times reported that the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) launched an investigation into the heart attacks, convulsions, and 13 deaths that occurred after the individuals had allegedly taken 5-Hour Energy shots.
And when asked about the FDA’s investigation, Manoj Bhargava, CEO of 5-hour Energy, told CBS News Medical Corresspondent Dr. Jon LaPook that he stood by the company’s products.
Bhargava told LaPook, “I would not sell a product that my family wouldn’t use.” However, Oregon Attorney General Ellen F. Rosenblum and Vermont Attorney General Bill Sorrell alleged in their respective lawsuits that 5-Hour Energy doesn’t provide the scientific data to support the company’s claim that its products are safe and that other ingredients, besides caffeine, increase a person’s energy.
In a July 17, 2014, press release, Rosenblum said that 5-hour Energy couldn’t advertise its “product as being effective” without “sufficient evidence” supporting the company’s “advertising claims.”
Sorrell stated in a July 21, 2014, press release that a “concentrated shot of caffeine” was the “only ingredient” providing the energy boost, and that 5-hour Energy could not advertise its products without “sufficient evidence to support such claims” about the ingredients and effectiveness of its product.
Crain’s Detroit Business said that Melissa Skabich, who is a spokeswoman for 5-Hour Energy, dismissed the recent lawsuits as an attempt to “shakedown” the company for its money.
According to Crain’s Detroit Business, the Associated Press quoted Skabich as saying, “When companies are being bullied by someone in a position of power, these companies roll over, pay the ransom and move on. We’re not doing that.”
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