WASHINGTON — Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), the most powerful person in the U.S. Senate, wants the Food and Drug Administration to investigate the increasingly popular energy drink brand Prime.
But it’s unclear what grounds the FDA would have to single out the company in the near future, or what the agency could really do on its own if it wanted to take serious actions against its co-founder, social media star and professional wrestler Logan Paul.
While energy drinks in general are risky for kids, the FDA hasn’t yet received a single so-called adverse event report through its main reporting portal about injuries from Prime, an agency spokesperson confirmed to STAT. The caffeine level in Paul’s beverage isn’t even close to the strongest energy drink on the shelves of convenience stores. And while Schumer is right that the product is being pushed on young people through social media advertising, Prime isn’t the only energy drink company doing this type of marketing — and marketing is typically regulated by another federal agency altogether, the Federal Trade Commission.
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