But, they haven't removed the classic variant. They (Coca-Cola) also have hundreds of brands that push for the sugar variant of those other sodas. That doesn't count the use of sucralose which has other issues, as does aspartame to a lesser degree.

If Coca-Cola tomorrow said ("our bad, we're sorry"), switched to a low/zero calorie sweetener blend (Stevia, Erythritol, Monk Fruit maybe a little aspartame) with approximate flavor and completely dropped sugar / HFCS then I'd believe they give a crap about tackling obesity.

As it stands, refined sugars are the single biggest problem with metabolic syndrome. Fructose is only metabolized by the liver into fats/triglycerides which are linked to damaging insulin receptors and elevating insulin resistance leading to higher insulin levels suppressing other hormones and leading to weight gain, followed by full on diabetes and related metabolic problems.

That doesn't mean you can't have some fruit in your diet... juice should never be more than half a cup a day (which was the old recommendation). And high-sugar tree fruits should be minimized in favor of berries. "Fruits and Vegetables" was grouped because a lot of what people consider veggies are botanically fruit. The sweet fruits should be kept to 2 servings a day tops.

Refined sugar shouldn't be consumed more than once every few weeks. It's horrible. All the negative effects on the body of alcohol without the negative reinforcement of a bad headache.