Robert F. Kennedy Jr., US President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to head the Department of Health and Human Services, will have a broad mandate to take on what the duo has called “the industrial food complex.” However, online claims that Kennedy said he would ban Diet Coke once in office are false; the statement circulating on social media comes from a parody account.
“BREAKING: Effective January 20th, I will be BANNING all consumption of Diet Coke in the United States,” says the supposed X post from Kennedy, shared December 6, 2024 on Instagram.
Other versions of the claim spread across Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.
Kennedy, who ended his bid for the presidency by endorsing Trump in the 2024 election, is courting US senators to support his nomination to lead the agency that oversees everything from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to the National Institutes of Health.
He and Trump have repeated debunked claims linking vaccines with autism, falsehoods that 77 Nobel prize winners cited in an open letter opposing his nomination.
Under the banner of “Make America Healthy Again,” Kennedy has been critical of colorizing ingredients and other aspects of ultra-processed food. He also announced he would recommend removing fluoride from public water despite the compound’s effectiveness at fighting cavities.
However, Kennedy did not share the announcement about banning Diet Coke — the screenshots come from a parody X account that has since been suspended (archived here).
The post was first shared December 4 by an account called “Robert F. Kennedy Jr – Health Secretary (Parody),” which appears to have previously impersonated the health secretary nominee.
The page’s handle was “@RFKJrHealthSec,” while Kennedy’s real account is “@RobertKennedyJr” and bears the logo for his former presidential campaign (archived here).
Despite the labeling, credulous social media users reacted to the parody post as if it came from Kennedy — including Democratic US Representative Debbie Dingell of Michigan.
Kennedy has said he is not impressed with Trump’s diet, which includes a reported affinity for Diet Coke, but keyword searches did not reveal any statements about banning the zero-calorie beverage.
Research has found high levels of aspartame, an ingredient in Diet Coke, can augment cancer risk. The American Cancer Society says that, based on guidance from the US Food and Drug Administration, the acceptable daily intake for the sweetener is equivalent to nine to 14 cans of the beverage per day for a person weighing 154 pounds (archived here and here).
AFP contacted Coca-Cola for comment, but a response was not forthcoming.
AFP has repeatedly fact-checked posts originally intended as a joke but later misinterpreted and shared as verified information.
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