By Andrew Rice
The Center Square

The Trump administration on Wednesday released new dietary guidelines alongside an updated food pyramid that prioritizes protein, dairy, fruits and vegetables.

The federal government is required to release dietary guidelines for Americans every five years, according to a mandate from the 1990 Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act. The guidelines will determine what kinds of foods should be prioritized in the federal food assistance program, prison system, veterans meals, active duty military and school lunches across the country.

The new guidelines recommend daily servings 1.2-1.6 grams of protein daily per kilogram of body weight, three servings of vegetables, two servings of fruit and 2-4 servings of whole grains each day.

The previous guidelines recommended six cups of grains, three cups of dairy, 2.5 cups of vegetables, two cups of fruit and 5.5 cups of “protein foods” per day.

“Protein and healthy fats are essential and were wrongly discouraged in prior dietary guidelines,” said Robert F. Kennedy Jr., secretary of U.S. Health and Human Services department. “We are ending the war on saturated fats.”

Kennedy explained that bad dietary guidelines lead to chronic disease which exacerbates the burden on taxpayer’s for health care. He said a large share of taxpayer dollars go to health care that can be prevented through better nutrition guidelines.

In fiscal year 2024, $1.9 trillion or 27% of federal outlay funds were spent on health care, according to KFF.

The dietary guidelines also included warnings against highly processed foods, added sugars and artificial additives.

“Avoid highly processed packaged, prepared, ready-to-eat, or other foods that are salty or sweet,” the guidelines advised.

Specifically, the guidelines advised including no more than 10 grams of added sugars in one meal. In a breakdown of various foods, the guidelines suggested for grain snacks like crackers to not exceed five grams of added sugars per 3/4 ounce and dairy snacks, like yogurt, to avoid exceeding 2.5 grams of added sugars per 2/3 cup.

“We are finally putting real food back at the center of the American diet,” said Brooke Rollins, secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. “Real food that nourishes the body, restores health, fuels energy and builds strength.”

Marty Makary, commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, criticized past nutrition guidance from the federal government and boasted of the updated guidance provided by the Trump administration. He said years of emphasis on refined carbohydrates, added sugars and ultra-processed foods has led to health crises in the United States.

“We are going to finally address the root causes of our broken health care system: insulin resistance and general body inflammation advanced by the protein poor, macronutrient poor, ultra-processed, refined carbohydrate diet that kids are addicted to today,” Makary said.

Federal officials also addressed the change to alcohol recommendations in the nutrition guidelines. Previous federal health recommendations advised two drinks a day or less for men and one drink per day or less for women.

However, new guidelines from the Trump administration does not offer specific amounts of alcohol to consume and instead recommends to “consume less alcohol for better overall health.”

Dr. Mehmet Oz, administrator for the centers for Medicare and Medicaid services, said the previous administration’s recommendations were not based on good data.

“That data was probably primarily confused with data about broader social connectedness,” Oz said to reporters Wednesday. “There is alcohol on these guidelines but the implication is don’t have it for breakfast.”