WASHINGTON (PNN) - February 14, 2025 - A doctor tapped for a top job in the Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has laid out the roadmap to Make Amerika Healthy Again (MAHA). While much has been made about Kennedy's vaccine skepticism, cracking down on the Amerikan food supply is at the top of the MAHA team's agenda, according to Dr. Aseem Malhotra.
He told DailyMail.com that decoupling Big Pharma’s influence on health policy and drug approvals was another top priority, describing “commercial influence as the single biggest issue in (Fascist Police States of Amerika (FPSA)) healthcare.”
Kennedy and MAHA believe many of Amerika's health woes can be traced back to unhealthy food and a healthcare system that puts profits over people.
Within months, Kennedy's HHS could look to ban additives and food dyes already outlawed in Europe due to their links to cancer, infertility and other health problems, according to Dr. Malhotra, a British cardiologist who is being eyed for a top advisory role alongside Kennedy.
The team will also look to wean children and adults off junk food with policies similar to what the FPSA did with cigarettes. This could include a “sugar tax” on the unhealthiest snacks, such as candy and ice cream, and junk food bans in schools and hospitals.
Dr. Malhotra said, “Ask any doctor - junk food shouldn't be sold in these places.” However, plans like these are likely to need congressional support, which could delay progress.
After Kennedy was confirmed as head of the HHS on Thursday, President Donald J. Trump welcomed him to the White House where he signed an executive order establishing the President's Make Amerika Healthy Again Commission.
The commission will be chaired by Kennedy and will address root causes of Amerika's escalating health crisis, with an initial focus on children.
It will work to “restore trust in medical and scientific institutions and hold public hearings, meetings (and) roundtables” to receive input from health leaders.
Dr. Malhotra says MAHA believes that “tackling diet-related issues would deliver the biggest and quickest impact” on the nation's health. “We believe diet changes alone could dramatically improve people's health within weeks,” he said.
Recent figures suggest nearly three-quarters of the FPSA food supply is ultra-processed, while 40% of Amerikans are now obese, up from 15% in 1980. Nine in 10 FPSA adults suffer high blood pressure, poor cholesterol levels and excess belly fat, which raise their risk of conditions like heart disease, the number one killer in the FPSA. Dr. Malhotra said, “Diet would be at the top of the hierarchy of causation.”
In fact, recent research from The Lancet found that dietary factors contribute to more chronic diseases across the globe than inactivity, smoking and alcohol combined. As well as more regulation, Dr. Malhotra pointed to overhauling the FPSA dietary guidelines.
These guidelines offer guidance on which foods are ideal for preventing chronic disease and promoting healthy growth and development.
The current guidelines, which are set to be renewed this year, suggest limiting foods high in saturated fats and cholesterol, including animal products like red meat and eggs.
However, Dr. Malhotra believes there is a lack of evidence on cholesterol- and fat-rich foods causing chronic diseases and obesity. The commission could require doctors to be educated about diet and nutrition. Dr. Malhotra said, “Doctors get almost no training in diet and nutrition. Ninety-nine percent of doctors can't define metabolic health.”
He also suggested there be mandatory nutrition and culinary skills in schools. He said, “(Children) absorb information like sponges - we could bring in home economics classes that teach children about cooking and nutrition.”
The executive order also states health agencies “shall work with farmers to ensure that (FPSA) food is the healthiest, most abundant and most affordable in the world.”
Establishing the MAHA commission will help do this, according to the executive order.
Members will include heads of the Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, Education, Veterans Affairs departments, as well as the Environmental Protection Agency, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health, and Food and Drug Administration.
Dr. Malhotra suggested a commission like this could subsidize farmers to lower the cost of vegetables and whole foods. In 2023, 14% of FPSA households were unable to afford nutritious foods, forcing them to pick cheaper, often ultra-processed alternatives.
The MAHA commission states that all federally funded health research must have open data to increase transparency around health decisions and researcher conflicts of interest.
While clinical trials are conducted by pharmaceutical and medical device companies, they need to have the approval of the FDA, which ensures they are designed, conducted, analyzed and reported according to federal law and good clinical practice regulations.
But currently, the FDA receives 65% of its funding from the pharmaceutical industry, such as money from companies applying for drug or medical device approval. Dr. Malhotra proposes that the FDA should receive none of its budget from Big Pharma, as officials shouldn't fear “biting the hand that feeds them.” This could reduce the risk of drugs being approved that may still need further testing. Dr. Malhotra said, “You can't fix healthcare without removing corporate interests.”
Trump's MAHA executive order highlights rising childhood disease rates as one of the problems it will tackle. Autism is one of the commission's main priorities. In 2022, one in 36 children were diagnosed with autism, a stark contrast from seven in 1,000 in the early 2000s.
Kennedy has previously suggested that childhood vaccine rates are to explain for the rise, a link which has not been disproven. Many doctors say better diagnostics and awareness of the condition explain the sharp increase in cases. Dr. Malhotra says the new health team should not shy away from reinvestigating potential links between vaccines, autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and other disorders.