Trump wants Coca-Cola to bring back real cane sugar in the U.S. But is it really better than high fructose corn syrup?

On Wednesday, President Trump took to his social media platform Truth Social to make a bold claim: that the Coca-Cola company has agreed to use only “REAL Cane Sugar in Coke in the United States.”

Other countries, such as Mexico, already use cane sugar in their version of the soda — but the American version of Coke uses high fructose corn syrup, a different type of sweetener that has the same amount of calories. Many people — including, apparently, the president — prefer the so-called Mexican Coke, which, while less common, is also available for purchase in stores and restaurants around the United States.

“It’s just better!” Trump wrote in his post.

Coca-Cola, for its part, has not yet confirmed Trump’s announcement, saying in a statement only that they “appreciate President Trump’s enthusiasm for our iconic Coca‑Cola brand” and that more details on “new innovative offerings within our Coca‑Cola product range will be shared soon.”

What is real cane sugar? Why aren’t we using it?

First, let’s explain what “real cane sugar” means. Cane sugar comes from sugarcane plants and is a natural sugar. High fructose corn syrup, on the other hand, is made from corn. Chemically, the two are slightly different: Cane sugar is made of glucose and fructose bonded together, while high fructose corn syrup has free glucose and fructose mixed separately.

Cane sugar fell out of favor for use in food manufacturing about 40 years ago, when then-President Ronald Reagan put a limit on sugar imports, raising the price of domestic sugar. Enter high fructose corn syrup, which was cheaper to produce on U.S. soil.

Now high fructose corn syrup is in so many foods for sale in the United States, from Coke to packaged baked goods to some pasta sauces. Even some brands of cottage cheese contain high fructose corn syrup. (And it’s important to note that high fructose corn syrup is not the same as the sweet, sticky corn syrup you can find at the grocery store — it’s made available only by food manufacturers.)

High fructose corn syrup and cane sugar (chemical name: sucrose) may taste very similar, but they are absorbed differently by the body. When you eat sucrose, your digestive system breaks it down into glucose and fructose before they’re absorbed into your bloodstream. High fructose corn syrup already contains free glucose and fructose, so your body absorbs them directly without needing to break them apart first.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Trump’s secretary of Health and Human Services, has been a vocal critic of high fructose corn syrup. He called it “a formula for making you obese and diabetic” in a promotional video during his own failed presidential run in 2024. However, this position has placed him at odds with corn farmers, according to the New York Times — many of whom supported Trump in the 2024 election.

The Corn Refiners Association warned that removing high fructose corn syrup from U.S. foods could lower corn prices by up to 34 cents a bushel and cost farmers $5.1 billion in revenue, leading to job losses and economic harm in rural communities.

But RFK Jr. is far from the first person to demonize high fructose corn syrup, and studies have been done to assess its true risks.

Is high fructose corn syrup really worse than cane sugar?

Both high fructose corn syrup and cane sugar come with health risks, especially when consumed in excess over time. They can raise blood sugar and contribute to weight gain and inflammation, leading to chronic issues like heart disease and diabetes. Sweetened soda is especially concerning from a health standpoint: A 2025 study found that drinking sugary beverages was linked to an increased risk of type 2 diabetes, more so than consuming sugar within food.

High fructose corn syrup, however, may be worse for you than cane sugar — at least, in theory. Because fructose is mainly processed by the liver, ingesting a lot of high fructose corn syrup can put extra stress on the organ, which may lead to the risk of liver problems and other health issues over time. A 2022 study also found that higher high fructose corn syrup intake in young adults led to more fat buildup in the liver and worse insulin sensitivity, both of which increase the risk of liver disease and type 2 diabetes. However, it did not compare high fructose corn syrup with sucrose, so it’s unclear if sucrose would have also had the same effect.

A 2022 study found that both high fructose corn syrup and sucrose had the same effects on weight, blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar but that high fructose corn syrup caused a small increase in C-reactive protein, a marker of inflammation. This could increase the risk of chronic inflammation over time, which may lead to conditions like heart disease, diabetes and other metabolic disorders. More research is needed to know if that difference really matters for long-term health.

Some animal studies have raised public concern over high fructose corn syrup, such as a 2024 study that linked high fructose corn syrup to tumor growth and cancer cell acceleration. And a 2010 study from Princeton found that rats with access to high-fructose corn syrup gained more weight than those with access to table sugar even with diets of equal calories. But, again, these studies were not done in humans, so it’s unclear what impacts they would have on our bodies.

The bottom line

More research must be done to assess the true harms of high fructose corn syrup versus cane sugar. What is clear: Diets high in sugar, in general, come with health concerns. Changing Coke’s formula, should the company choose to do so, may or may not make a major impact on one’s health — but drinking less of the sweet stuff could do your body a service.