Another day, another food recall? You better believe it. This time, it’s the Coca-Cola Company recalling Minute Maid Zero Sugar Lemonade after it came to light that 13,152 cases of the beverage were mislabeled and actually contain sugar.
According to a report by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the mislabeled lemonade cans were sent to stores in Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio, and the incident has been categorized as a Class II risk. Per the FDA, a Class II risk is defined as “a situation in which use of or exposure to a violative product may cause temporary or medically reversible adverse health consequences or where the probability of serious adverse health consequences is remote.” So while it’s unlikely that drinking the lemonade will be deadly, if you consume a lot of it, thinking it’s sugar-free, there can be issues for some people.
In a statement from the Coca-Cola company to CNN, the spokesperson said, “No impacted product remains in the market, and all recall activities in those markets are complete.” In other words, there’s a possibility that some of these products have been purchased; a few may even be sitting in your home. Because of this, Coca-Cola is urging consumers to check their Minute Maid Zero Sugar Lemonade for the following codes: FEB1725CNA or FEB1725CNB. If your lemonade has one of these codes, the company urges you to either toss it or return it for a full refund.
Why you want to ditch this drink if you bought it
Per NBC News, each 12-ounce can contains a whopping 40 grams of sugar, plus 30 times more calories and 20 times more carbs than the sugar-free version. But it’s that sugar content that can absolutely be problematic for people with diabetes. For those who don’t have diabetes, the regular consumption of one or two cans of such a sugary drink can lead to type 2 diabetes, contribute to heart disease, and potentially cause metabolic syndrome, resulting in elevated sugar levels and high blood pressure (via WebMD).
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), about 38.4 million (11.6%) of Americans have diabetes, around 8.1 million have no idea they have it, and approximately 97.6 million Americans 18 and older have prediabetes. In other words, the United States has a serious problem with sugar consumption. So even if you aren’t aware of any health issues you may have that would make it a bad idea for you to drink mislabeled “sugar-free” lemonade, you’re still better off throwing it out or returning it. Ice water with a couple slices of lemons is just as refreshing, and isn’t going to shoot your sugar levels through the roof.
