A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit claiming that Coca-Cola Co&rsquo;s advertising for Diet Coke misleads people into thinking that consuming the soft drink assists in weight loss and that it actually causes weight gain.

The plaintiff, Shana Becerra, claimed that she and others would not have bought Diet Coke, which was launched in 1982, but for the word &ldquo;diet&rdquo; and ads such as one showing the soft drink being poured by a bare-chested man with a well-muscled torso.

In a decision on Tuesday, however, U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco said 13 studies cited by Becerra were &ldquo;equivocal&rdquo; as to whether diet soda causes weight gain, and that she must prove it does to prevail.

He also noted that supermarkets do not display Diet Coke in the health food section, and said reasonable consumers would understand that any caloric savings would lead to weight loss only as part of a &ldquo;sensible diet and exercise regimen&rdquo; dependent on individual metabolism.

&ldquo;Becerra has overstated the actual science,&rdquo; Alsup wrote.

The judge separately rejected Coca-Cola&rsquo;s argument that federal law preempted the lawsuit, which sought class-action status.

A lawyer for the plaintiff did not immediately respond on Wednesday to a request for comment. Coca-Cola did not immediately respond to a similar request.

Becerra, who lives in Santa Rosa, California, claimed that non-nutritive sweeteners such as Diet Coke&rsquo;s aspartame interfere with the ability to metabolize calories and raise the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

She sued on behalf of California residents for unspecified damages and an injunction against marketing Diet Coke as &ldquo;diet.&rdquo;

Coca-Cola relaunched the Diet Coke brand in January to stem falling sales and added blood orange, cherry, ginger-lime and mango flavours in taller, thinner cans.

The case is Becerra v Coca-Cola Co, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 17-05916.

The judge separately rejected Coca-Cola’s argument that federal law preempted the lawsuit, which sought class-action status.

A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit claiming that Coca-Cola Co’s advertising for Diet Coke misleads people into thinking that consuming the soft drink assists in weight loss and that it actually causes weight gain. The plaintiff, Shana Becerra, claimed that she and others would not have bought Diet Coke, which was launched in 1982, but for the word “diet” and ads such as one showing the soft drink being poured by a bare-chested man with a well-muscled torso. In a decision on Tuesday, however, U.S. District Judge William Alsup in San Francisco said 13 studies cited by Becerra were “equivocal” as to whether diet soda causes weight gain, and that she must prove it does to prevail. He also noted that supermarkets do not display Diet Coke in the health food section, and said reasonable consumers would understand that any caloric savings would lead to weight loss only as part of a “sensible diet and exercise regimen” dependent on individual metabolism. “Becerra has overstated the actual science,” Alsup wrote. The judge separately rejected Coca-Cola’s argument that federal law preempted the lawsuit, which sought class-action status. A lawyer for the plaintiff did not immediately respond on Wednesday to a request for comment. Coca-Cola did not immediately respond to a similar request. Becerra, who lives in Santa Rosa, California, claimed that non-nutritive sweeteners such as Diet Coke’s aspartame interfere with the ability to metabolize calories and raise the risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes. She sued on behalf of California residents for unspecified damages and an injunction against marketing Diet Coke as “diet.” Coca-Cola relaunched the Diet Coke brand in January to stem falling sales and added blood orange, cherry, ginger-lime and mango flavours in taller, thinner cans. The case is Becerra v Coca-Cola Co, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 17-05916.

Coca-Cola topples lawsuit that alleged misleading Diet Coke advertising

Fans of Coca-Cola in gas-rich Turkmenistan&#39;s capital Ashgabat are complaining they can no longer &quot;taste the feeling&quot;: their favourite drink has disappeared from shop shelves amidst a sharpening economic crisis.

&quot;You used to be able to find it in every shop, but now only a few are selling it and the price has increased significantly,&quot; Mergen Kakayev, a 24-year-old taxi driver told AFP.

&quot;People say it is unhealthy, but I have never noticed. For me a good meal is a piece of hot naan bread and a glass of cold Coca-Cola,&quot; said Kakayev, who got hooked on the drink ever since it first appeared in the secluded country in the 1990s.

Turkmenistan has imposed increasingly draconian restrictions on foreign currency exchange as global prices for hydrocarbons - over 90 percent of the country&#39;s exports -&nbsp;collapsed in 2014. &nbsp;&nbsp;

A spokeswoman for the drink&#39;s producer, Coca-Cola Icecek, which employs around 300 people in Ashgabat, told AFP by telephone it was &quot;facing raw material supply shortages&quot; due to &quot;temporary hard currency conversion issues&quot;, but was not planning to leave the market.

Two shopkeepers in Ashgabat told AFP that the cost of Coca-Cola spiked shortly after the conclusion of the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games Turkmenistan, hosted in Ashgabat in September.&nbsp;

 
The sporting event backed by the Olympic Council of Asia emerged as a key theme in state propaganda and the government lavished $5 billion on an Olympic village for the event alone. Coca-Cola Icecek were among the sponsors of the games.

An AFP correspondent visited several shops in central Ashgabat where employees said that Coca-Cola was now too expensive to stock after the price for a half-litre bottle went from 1.5 to 4 manats ($1.14).

One Turkmen businessman who gave his first name Aigozel told AFP that he was able to withdraw just $50 daily from bank machines during his last trip abroad.&nbsp;

The government last devalued its manat currency in January 2015 when it shaved a fifth off its value. But it still appears overvalued: while the official rate is one dollar to 3.5 manats, the greenback fetches over 8 manats on the black market.&nbsp;

Turkmenistan has imposed increasingly draconian restrictions on foreign currency exchange as global prices for hydrocarbons - over 90 percent of the country's exports - collapsed in 2014

Fans of Coca-Cola in gas-rich Turkmenistan's capital Ashgabat are complaining they can no longer "taste the feeling": their favourite drink has disappeared from shop shelves amidst a sharpening economic crisis. "You used to be able to find it in every shop, but now only a few are selling it and the price has increased significantly," Mergen Kakayev, a 24-year-old taxi driver told AFP. "People say it is unhealthy, but I have never noticed. For me a good meal is a piece of hot naan bread and a glass of cold Coca-Cola," said Kakayev, who got hooked on the drink ever since it first appeared in the secluded country in the 1990s. Turkmenistan has imposed increasingly draconian restrictions on foreign currency exchange as global prices for hydrocarbons - over 90 percent of the country's exports - collapsed in 2014. A spokeswoman for the drink's producer, Coca-Cola Icecek, which employs around 300 people in Ashgabat, told AFP by telephone it was "facing raw material supply shortages" due to "temporary hard currency conversion issues", but was not planning to leave the market. Two shopkeepers in Ashgabat told AFP that the cost of Coca-Cola spiked shortly after the conclusion of the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games Turkmenistan, hosted in Ashgabat in September. The sporting event backed by the Olympic Council of Asia emerged as a key theme in state propaganda and the government lavished $5 billion on an Olympic village for the event alone. Coca-Cola Icecek were among the sponsors of the games. An AFP correspondent visited several shops in central Ashgabat where employees said that Coca-Cola was now too expensive to stock after the price for a half-litre bottle went from 1.5 to 4 manats ($1.14). One Turkmen businessman who gave his first name Aigozel told AFP that he was able to withdraw just $50 daily from bank machines during his last trip abroad. The government last devalued its manat currency in January 2015 when it shaved a fifth off its value. But it still appears overvalued: while the official rate is one dollar to 3.5 manats, the greenback fetches over 8 manats on the black market.

Turkmenistan currency crisis seen causing cola shortage

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Coca-Cola topples lawsuit that alleged misleading Diet Coke advertising

Turkmenistan currency crisis seen causing cola shortage