by GLENDALE, ARIZONA: Former Republican presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and now … [+]
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was told by President-elect Trump that he could “go wild on health care.” It is unclear what that would entail and in what capacity, whether he would potentially lead a department or agency of the federal government or serve as a White House adviser. But regardless of his title in the new administration, RFK Jr. will likely try to drive change, namely the food industry.
He expressed in no uncertain terms his desire for Americans to eat healthier. On the surface, this seems harmless, even benevolent, especially in terms of reducing pesticide use and restoring what Kennedy portrays as a food ecosystem co-opted by corporate interests. However, it contradicts the actions of the first Trump administration, where deregulation was the mantra. The Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Agriculture relaxed chemical and nutritional standards. Additionally, the Trump administration undermined the integrity of nutritional science by not allowing discussion of certain foods in the Federal Dietary Guidelines Committee.
In a post-election interview with National Public Radio, Kennedy said that Trump had given him three mandates: to rid regulatory agencies like the Food and Drug Administration of “corruption and conflict,” to “return the agencies to the gold standard of evidence” based on science and medicine and “end the chronic disease epidemic.”
One alleged cause of what Kennedy and others call the chronic disease crisis — including the high prevalence of obesity and diabetes — is poor nutrition. A recently published review in the British Medical Journal shows the connection between daily exposure to highly processed foods and chronic disease. And Pew Research shows that Americans are consuming many more calories than they used to. The average American consumed about 2,500 calories per day in 2010, about 23% more than in 1970. And between 2010 and 2023, the number rose by about another 1,000 calories, another 40% increase.
It is plausible that limiting calorie intake of unhealthy foods and promoting nutritious diets without potentially harmful additives would improve population health, particularly when combined with increased physical activity.
These are noble goals that RFK Jr. wants to achieve. But the goals are not new, and even the means by which they will be achieved are in some ways more consistent with what Democratic administrations tried to pursue than with the executive actions implemented during the first Trump administration.
National Dietary Guidelines were first published by the Carter Administration in 1980, 60 years after the federal government began providing nutritional advice to the public through bulletins, posters, brochures, books and, more recently, websites and social media. From about 1920 to 1980, nutritional advice included informing the public about the pyramid of food groups in a healthy diet, as well as food safety and storage, and recommendations about the need for adequate mineral and vitamin intake to prevent certain diseases.
The first publication of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans was published in 1980. Since then it has been Dietary Guidelines have become a cornerstone of federal food and nutrition advice, which sets the conditions for school meals and federally funded food programs.
Thirty years later, former first lady Michelle Obama led a program called “Let’s Move” aimed at curbing childhood obesity. President Barack Obama launched a Childhood Obesity Task Force in 2010 with the lofty goal of solving the problem of childhood obesity within a generation. He announced the first lady’s role in leading a nationwide awareness effort to improve children’s health through nutrition and exercise advice. Obama stated: “To achieve our goal, we must accelerate the implementation of successful strategies to prevent and combat obesity.” These strategies include updating child nutrition policies to reflect the best available scientific information, ensuring access to healthy, affordable food in schools and communities and increasing physical activity.”
And then, 12 years later, the Biden administration convened the second White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health in 2022, 50 years after the first. The administration soon began implementing a new national strategy to “end hunger and promote healthy diets and physical activity so fewer Americans suffer from diet-related diseases.”
The Biden administration says it has made school meals healthier, strengthened nutritional standards in the Special Supplements for Women, Infants and Children program and banned certain pesticides. The government claims it has invested in local food systems while pursuing policies that counter agribusiness consolidation.
Additionally, in January 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services hosted its first-ever Food is Medicine Summit, where stakeholders explored the intersection of nutrition and health. HHS’s mission is to promote understanding of the connection between nutrition and health, increase access to healthy foods, especially in underserved communities, and educate the public about what diets are essential for better health.
The contrast between the Biden and Trump administrations is evident, according to Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), who writes that Trump’s track record during his first term is at odds with RFK Jr.’s “Make America Healthy Again” priorities . Deregulation was the issue from 2017 to 2020. For example, the EPA lifted a ban on chlorpyrifos, a widely used farm pesticide that has been linked to neurological problems in children. Additionally, under Trump, the EPA has approved more than 100 toxic pesticides, some of which are banned in other countries.
The first Trump administration did not address highly processed foods. Nor has there been any effort to adjust agricultural subsidies to focus on producing more fruits and vegetables. In addition, the administration has reversed efforts to make school meals healthier and cut billions of dollars from food assistance programs by rolling back rules passed under President Obama that required more whole grains, fruits and vegetables in school meals.
In particular, the first Trump administration limited the nutritional science that can be considered when developing the 2020 U.S. Dietary Guidelines. To illustrate, it deemed any policy committee discussion of red and processed meat, sodium and ultra-processed foods and their environmental impact off-limits.
Maybe Trump has changed his mind? It’s certainly possible. But not if we believe that the contents of the project will guide the second Trump administration in 2025. Project 2025 is a policy initiative of the American conservative think tank Heritage Foundation. The document calls, among other things, for the complete repeal of the federal dietary guidelines and the federal food labeling requirement. During the presidential campaign, Trump distanced himself from Project 2025. Nevertheless, the president-elect’s agenda and several of his proposed Cabinet appointments have so far overlapped with Project 2025, whether in content or copyright.
So what can we expect from RFK Jr. given what we saw during the first Trump administration? Probably more deregulation. According to RFK Jr., he has proposed eliminating regulatory agencies such as the FDA’s nutrition division Newsweek. While the FDA regularly reviews the safety of food additives based on what the agency views as rigorous science and research, RFK Jr. countered by saying the FDA is not “protecting our children.”
And deregulation may also apply to items that RFK Jr. might be involved in promoting, such as dietary supplements. In fact, it appears that the new Trump administration intends to further loosen already lax dietary supplement rules STAT news.
We may also see public health messaging going against the grain. Much like RFK Jr. embraces vaccine skeptics, he could convene government conferences with unconventional nutritionists and functional medicine advocates. [I have reached out to RFK Jr. to comment on this, but his office did not immediately respond to my request] Based on RFK Jr.’s statements, a selection of points that could be discussed: opposition to the use of seed oils such as corn, canola, sunflower and soybean oil; promoting raw milk consumption; Testosterone replacement therapy as an anti-aging agent. Proponents say raw milk contains more beneficial enzymes and probiotics than pasteurized milk and that its consumption is linked to lower rates of asthma and allergies. Opponents say it poses serious health risks and could lead to deadly bacterial outbreaks. In short, a public health campaign led by RFK Jr. is likely to spark further controversy and infighting. To quote Kurt Vonnegut: “And so it goes.”
