Three soft drink giants are being sued for misleading advertising over their diet soda products. Three lawsuits against Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group allege that marketing of diet drinks deceives consumers into believing the products will help them manage or lose weight. The plaintiffs believe the word “diet” shouldn’t be used to describe these drinks as they are not diet aids.
“What’s been going on is clearly deceptive advertising,” said Abraham Melamed, one of the attorneys behind the case. “In our opinion, it’s one of the biggest consumer scams in the last 50 years, and it has to stop. There’s a strong sense of urgency because there are hundreds of thousands, maybe millions, of consumers out there that are being deceived on a daily basis.”
Six people claim that drinking Diet Coke, Diet Pepsi, Diet Dr. Pepper and the like actually caused them to gain weight. It is alleged weight gain can happen as aspartame in the diet soft drinks interferes with the body’s ability to properly metabolize calories.
The soft drink companies are attempting to dismiss the lawsuits as frivolous, but Marion Nestle, professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University, believes there may be at least some merit to the argument the plaintiffs are presenting. “One point is clear: Diet sodas have not been shown to promote weight loss,” Nestle said, calling the recent research about aspartame “suggestive and interesting, but not fully proven.”
Video regarding this lawsuit and the accusations made about diet soft drinks is below.
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If diet soft drinks have not been proven to help with weight loss, that is something consumers should know. Of course, some people drink diet drinks because they like the taste, but water is a much healthier option when someone is looking to lose weight. If weight loss is the ultimate goal, that person would be better off grabbing a glass or a bottle of water.
Do you think this lawsuit is justifiable or are people simply looking to score a quick buck? Share your thoughts below!
Source: NY Post
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