Two of the most iconic coffee chains, Starbucks and Dunkin’, are both currently serving coffee drinks with protein in them, and both restaurants’ new menu items are causing bodily changes in middle school girls.
The Bexley Starbucks located near the Bexley Middle School has colorful drinks lined up on the online order counter every day around 3:30 p.m. before a swarm of tweenaged girls make their way inside the building.
Usually, drinks like the caramel ribbon crunch Frappuccino, pink drink, iced matcha and mocha cookie crumble Frappuccino crowd the counter, but recently, they have been replaced by the protein drinks.
“At first, the idea of putting protein in a coffee drink disgusted me,” said eighth-grader Madison Baumgartner, “but when I found out that the coffee-to-everything-else ratio was even less than normal, I was so excited to try the drinks.”
Seventh-grader Kennedy Walden shared the same excitement. “I go to Starbucks with my friends every day after school, but I hate coffee. When I realized the new protein drinks were basically not even coffee, I was like, ‘Oh, period. They ate with that.’”
The most popular protein drink from Starbucks is the iced protein matcha. “I actually do enjoy coffee, so I get the iced vanilla protein latte,” said eighth-grader Elizabeth Rose. “It’s almost eight dollars after tip, but I use my dad’s credit card, so it’s basically free.”
Girls who are not only lucky enough to have their parents buy their drinks but also drive them have enjoyed the competing protein drinks at the Dunkin’ on East Broad Street.
“My favorite [Dunkin’ protein drink] is Megan’s mango protein refresher,” said sixth-grader Charlotte Nilsson. “Well, now that I think of it, I actually don’t really like how it tastes, but I love Megan Thee Stallion.”
Stallion is a female rap artist best known for her collaborations with artists like Cardi B, TWICE, and GloRilla. Dunkin’s new protein line is a collaboration with Stallion.
The three Dunkin’ brand deal celebrities prior to Megan Thee Stallion were Charli D’Amelio in 2020, Ice Spice in 2023 and Sabrina Carpenter in 2024 and 2025.
“Bedroom pop” musician Clairo recently skyrocketed in popularity, largely due to the “performative male” fad. Her management team attempted to get her a brand deal with Dunkin’; however, Clairo did not meet the requirements due to having never “twerked during a live performance.”
At this time, Starbucks does not have any celebrity drinks. Clairo’s management team also tried to make a deal with Starbucks, but Clairo did not meet the requirements due to having never “been a millennial.”
While the Bexley Middle School girls have enjoyed both restaurants’ protein drinks, several of them have reported that they did not know what protein was before consuming an immeasurable number of drinks.
“I’ve started noticing some changes in my body,” Baumgartner said. “I think I’ve grown a few inches … like 12 or 24 inches.”
Rose has also noticed a few small changes.
“I play for the [Bexley Middle School] softball team, and we recently started group lifting,” Rose said. “I went from a small T-shirt size to a large one in just a week. I used to be the weakest one on the team, but now I can bench-press my friend Kennedy.”
While Baumgartner and Rose have only noticed a few changes, Nilsson has noticed a surplus, suggesting the protein drinks affect 11-year-olds more than older adolescents. “I really wish I didn’t drink so many of those protein drinks,” Nilsson said. “Like [Mackenzie], I’ve also gotten a lot taller. Now my voice sounds different, I’m sweaty all the time and my skin is oily.”
Peers of the girls who have been affected by the drinks have given up coffee entirely; many have taken up vaping instead.
