US President Donald Trump's administration on Wednesday announced a new set of nutritional recommendations advising Americans to eat more protein and less sugar than previously recommended, while also urging consumers to avoid highly processed foods in order to have a healthy diet.
The guide is the latest product of the Trump administration's “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) agenda, named after the social movement that supports Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
He and other officials, including Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, have implemented MAHA's policy goals, such as cutting back on childhood vaccines and restricting access to unhealthy foods for people on food stamps.
Kennedy and Rollins pledged to simplify the recommendations and eliminate what they described as undue influence of food companies on their recommendations.
The guidelines are published every five years by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture.
The new guidelines implement some of the changes Kennedy promised, such as strongly discouraging highly processed foods and foods with added sugar. Kennedy and his supporters in the MAHA pointed to the high consumption of sugar and processed foods in the American diet as contributing factors to rising rates of chronic disease.
“Today, our government is declaring war on added sugar,” Kennedy said at a White House press conference.
Recommendations for prioritizing fruits, vegetables and whole grains and limiting saturated fat consumption to 10% of daily calories remain unchanged.
Kennedy stated that following these recommendations would reduce health care costs. Health care affordability is a key issue for Republicans heading into the 2026 midterm elections.
“The new recommendations recognize that whole, nutrient-dense foods are the most effective path to better health and lower health care costs,” Kennedy said.
The administration's MAHA commission, chaired by Kennedy, wrote in a strategic report in September that the USDA (Department of Agriculture) and HHS (Department of Health) plan to reform the process of developing future nutritional guidelines, including the structure and composition of the advisory committee that makes recommendations about their content.
Some advocacy groups have criticized the advisory board for being overly influenced by the food industry. The committee that provided advice on this year's dietary guidelines was appointed by President Joe Biden's administration.
More protein, less sugar
The Dietary Guidelines are the basis of federal school lunch nutrition programs eaten by nearly 30 million children and are the basis of medical recommendations and national disease prevention efforts.
This new version of the dietary guidelines recommends that adults consume between 1.2 and 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day, up from the previous recommended daily intake of 0.8 grams.
It also encourages high-fat dairy consumption, a shift from decades-old recommendations that urged people to opt for low-fat dairy products to mitigate the health risks of high-fat diets. Dairy industry groups have argued that farmers are being disadvantaged by the policy which discourages consumption of high-fat dairy products.
The guidance omits the long-standing recommendation that adults limit alcohol consumption to one or two drinks a day, instead offering only the recommendation that adults “drink less alcohol for better overall health”.
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A White House official said the guidance reflects sound scientific data and will help improve public health once it is implemented.
“The American Medical Association welcomes the administration's new dietary guidelines because they shine a spotlight on the highly processed foods, sugar-sweetened beverages and excess sodium that fuel heart disease, diabetes, obesity and other chronic diseases,” Bobby Mukkamala, the group's president, said in a statement.
The School Nutrition Association said school meals already include fruits, vegetables and other healthy foods, in line with federal guidelines, and that they need more funding and training to further expand cooked meals.
Avoiding highly processed foods
The new guidance states that “added sugars or non-caloric sweeteners are not recommended or considered part of a healthy or nutritious diet” and that if consumed, added sugars should not exceed 10 grams per meal.
Previous guidelines allowed a small amount of sugars to be added to healthier foods to help meet dietary guidelines, up to 10% of daily calories.
The new guidelines state that highly processed foods and foods and drinks with artificial flavors, low-calorie sweeteners and colors should be avoided. Some food companies are already eliminating artificial ingredients in line with administration priorities.
Soft drink makers such as Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, as well as Mondelez, which makes Oreo cookies, have come under close scrutiny from Kennedy. Major food manufacturers based in Europe, Nestle and Danone, are also exposed to the changes imposed by Kennedy.
The American Beverage Association, which represents soda and other beverage manufacturers, said in a statement that nearly 60 percent of beverages sold in the U.S. contain no sugar and that discouraging the consumption of sugar-free beverages is “unworkable” and “is inherently contradictory.”
The guidelines do not address ultra-processed foods, the definition of which is hotly debated by the food industry. HHS and USDA have announced that they are developing a federally valid definition of ultra-processed foods.
Scientists around the world have warned that ultra-processed foods, which often contain additives and industrial ingredients, are linked to health problems such as type 2 diabetes and obesity.
New York City, USA – August 3, 2013: People in line at a hot dog stand in Manhattan. Illustrative image. PHOTO: © Stefano Armaroli | Dreamstime.com
