Coca-Cola has announced it’s releasing a new Coke product this fall that’s sweetened with cane sugar rather than high-fructose corn syrup. The announcement followed a July Truth Social post in which President Donald Trump claimed he convinced Coke to change its product.
To be fair, we don’t know whether Trump thinks cane sugar just tastes better, or whether he wanted to improve Coke’s nutritional profile, or if the decision was driven by political reasons. But regardless, this move has been hailed as a victory by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his Make America Healthy Again Commission.
But is cane sugar really any better than high-fructose corn syrup (HCFS), from a nutritional perspective? The evidence strongly points to no.
Here’s why: While HFCS definitely doesn’t do any favors for human health, neither does cane sugar. Too much added sugar — regardless of which type or what food it’s in — can cause spikes in blood sugar levels and has been linked with many different chronic health conditions, from type 2 diabetes to heart disease and obesity. Soda, which is loaded with added sugars, is an unhealthy food choice whether it’s sweetened with high-fructose corn syrup or cane sugar.
