--- title: Group Sends Letters to FTC and FDA about Diet-Soda False Advertising description: A consumer-advocacy group is calling today for federal regulatory agencies to investigate the use of the word diet by diet-soda manufacturers, calling the adjective "deceptive,... canonical: https://time.com/3815125/diet-soda-labeling/ author: Mandy Oaklander article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-04-09T19:19:09.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T08:05:16.243Z article:section: Health og:title: There's a Movement to Ban the Word 'Diet' From Diet Sodas og:description: A consumer-advocacy group is calling today for federal regulatory agencies to investigate the use of the word diet by diet-soda manufacturers, calling the adjective "deceptive,... og:url: https://time.com/3815125/diet-soda-labeling/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blteedae2f227c1843f/698783e8cd6848722809a2eb/diet-soda.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Diet soda og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: There's a Movement to Ban the Word 'Diet' From Diet Sodas twitter:description: A consumer-advocacy group is calling today for federal regulatory agencies to investigate the use of the word diet by diet-soda manufacturers, calling the adjective "deceptive,... twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blteedae2f227c1843f/698783e8cd6848722809a2eb/diet-soda.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Group Wants to Ban the Word _Diet_ From Diet Sodas ## Video: Should I Drink Seltzer Water? [Watch (HLS stream): Should I Drink Seltzer Water?](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/SSdTN2EQ.m3u8) (1:30)  _Published 2015-02-04. Seltzer -- also known as bubbly water, carbonated water, soda water and sparkling water -- comes with as many health myths as it does names. Luckily, seltzer is one of the rare instances where something you love drinking isn’t bad for you._  by [Mandy Oaklander](https://time.com/author/mandy-oaklander/)  ## Mandy Oaklander Oaklander is a senior editor at TIME. Apr 9, 2015 7:19 PM UTC  Beverage and Lemon in Glass Beverage and Lemon in GlassGetty Images  by [Mandy Oaklander](https://time.com/author/mandy-oaklander/)  ## Mandy Oaklander Oaklander is a senior editor at TIME. Apr 9, 2015 7:19 PM UTC A consumer-advocacy group is calling today for federal regulatory agencies to investigate the use of the word _diet_ by diet-soda manufacturers, calling the adjective “deceptive, false and misleading” and citing research that finds diet soda may actually lead to weight gain instead of weight loss. “This looks like a classic case of false advertising,” says Gary Ruskin, co-founder and executive director of U.S. Right to Know, a nonprofit organization based in Oakland, Calif., which wrote two letters — [one](http://time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/ftc-artificial-sweetener-letter.pdf) to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and [another](http://time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/fda-artificial-sweetener-petition.pdf) to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) — demanding a sweeping investigation into the use of the word _diet_ in advertising by companies that use artificial sweeteners. U.S. Right to Know claims that the use of the word violates federal law against false advertising, branding and labeling of food products. “We’re doing this to make sure that people don’t get sicker from these products and gain weight when they want to be losing weight,” Ruskin says. **MORE:**[ Should I Drink Diet Soda?](http://time.com/3628546/diet-soda-bad-for-you/) [Some research suggests](http://time.com/3746047/diet-soda-bad-belly-fat/) that diet soda may contribute to weight gain instead of weight loss, possibly by decoupling the link between sweet taste and caloric consequences, thus [leading to overeating](http://time.com/3750550/is-diet-soda-bad-for-you/). “Previous research, including human clinical trials, supports that diet beverages are an effective tool as part of an overall weight management plan,” said the American Beverage Association, the trade association representing the beverage industry, in a statement provided to TIME. “Numerous studies have repeatedly demonstrated the benefits of diet beverages — as well as low-calorie sweeteners, which are in thousands of foods and beverages — in helping to reduce calorie intake. Furthermore, low- and no-calorie sweeteners have repeatedly been deemed safe by decades of scientific research as well as regulatory agencies around the globe — including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3815125/diet-soda-labeling/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3815125/diet-soda-labeling/"},"headline":"Group Wants to Ban the Word Diet From Diet Sodas","datePublished":"2015-04-09T19:19:09.000Z","dateModified":"2026-08-04T08:05:16.243Z","description":"A consumer-advocacy group is calling today for federal regulatory agencies to investigate the use of the word diet by diet-soda manufacturers, calling the adjective \"deceptive,...","url":"https://time.com/3815125/diet-soda-labeling/","keywords":["Diet & Nutrition","FTC","FDA","Soda","Sugar"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blteedae2f227c1843f/698783e8cd6848722809a2eb/diet-soda.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Mandy Oaklander","jobTitle":"Oaklander is a senior editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/mandy-oaklander/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blteedae2f227c1843f/698783e8cd6848722809a2eb/diet-soda.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Diet soda","caption":"Diet soda","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/dietnutrition/","name":"Diet & Nutrition"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3815125/diet-soda-labeling/","name":"Group Wants to Ban the Word Diet From Diet Sodas"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Should I Drink Seltzer Water?","description":"Seltzer -- also known as bubbly water, carbonated water, soda water and sparkling water -- comes with as many health myths as it does names. 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