Trump believes diet soda kills cancer cells, Dr Oz reveals | Donald Trump | The Guardian
Trump claimed to Mehmet Oz, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services chief, that diet soda kills cancer cells because it can kill grass when poured on it, suggesting the logic applies to cancer cells in the human body. Oz recounted the exchange on his son Donald Trump Jr.’s podcast “Triggered with Don Jr,” describing a moment aboard Air Force One when Trump defended his consumption of orange Fanta by making this assertion, later joking that the drink could not be unhealthy because it is “fresh squeezed.”
Multiple physicians publicly rejected Trump’s claim, emphasizing that no scientific evidence supports the notion that diet soda prevents or cures cancer. Pediatrician Zachary Rubin pointed out the logical fallacy in Trump’s reasoning, noting that by the same standard, bleach would be a superfood, and he referenced Trump’s pandemic-era suggestions about injecting disinfectants as evidence of similar flawed health reasoning. Emergency physician Owais Durrani issued a straightforward statement that diet soda does not kill cancer cells.
The scientific evidence on artificial sweeteners in diet soda is limited and concerning but does not support Trump’s claims. The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies aspartame, the sweetener used in most diet sodas, as “possibly carcinogenic to humans” based on limited evidence, while a 2022 French cohort study found aspartame linked to a 15 percent higher cancer risk without establishing causation. Research also indicates that artificial sweeteners may harm gut health and microbial diversity, contradicting any protective effect.
Trump has consistently defended his diet of sweet drinks and fast food as part of his health regimen, with Oz characterizing his approach as eating junk food from major chains due to their quality control standards. Don Jr. suggested his father’s consumption habits might reflect something beneficial, citing Trump’s energy and stamina despite his age, effectively endorsing disproven health claims.
These remarks emerge as the health department works to update U.S. nutrition guidelines and revise dietary recommendations to emphasize “real food,” making Trump’s promotion of diet soda particularly problematic at a moment when federal health policy is being reshaped. The incident underscores the administration’s broader push toward alternative medicine narratives that prioritize unscientific claims over established medical consensus.
(Source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/apr/15/trump-diet-coke-soda-kills-cancer)