The maker of Coke, on Thursday said it has developed a new drink with Swiss food giant Nestle that speeds up drinker's metabolic rate thus helping them reduce weight.
Marion Nestle, a nutrition professor at New York University, said the claims were based on a premature research study which provides no proof that the proposed drink would help normal people under normal conditions burn calories.
"The idea that this drink will help people lose weight is just ridiculous," Nestle told Reuters. "It is an example of the lengths to which companies will go to sell products."
However, Atlanta, Ga.-based Coca Cola said that a research by scientists at the Nestle Research Center in Lausanne, Switzerland, qualifies the new sparkling green tea, Enviga, as a "negative calorie" drink.
"Enviga contains the optimum blend of green tea extracts, caffeine and naturally active plant micronutrients designed to work with your body to increase calorie burning, thus creating a negative calorie effect," Rhona Applebaum, Coca-Cola's chief scientist, said in a statement.
Lona Sandon, national spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association, although acknowledged the metabolism-enhancing properties of the drink but said the notion that the drink will melt away the pounds was bizarre.
"We are kidding ourselves if we think we can drink this and melt the pounds away. These companies are just playing on people's desires for a quick fix for weight loss," Sandon told Reuters.
"This won't make up for a poor diet and lack of exercise and this amount of caffeine could even cause problems for people who are sensitive to caffeine," he said.
The product will go on sale in the U.S. northeast in November and roll out nationally in January.
