The Trump administration announced new dietary guidelines on Wednesday, including an inverted food pyramid that places red meat and whole-fat dairy at the top alongside fruits and vegetables.
“We are ending the war on saturated fats,” Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said during a press conference at the White House this week. “My message is clear. Eat real food.”
The new guidelines encourage research-backed practices like eating more whole foods including fruits, vegetables and whole grains, as well as reducing intake of highly processed foods. But it also offers different guidance than what health experts say about eating large amounts of red meat, whole milk and cheese.
A high intake of red meats and processed meats has been associated with a higher risk of cancer, diabetes, heart disease and premature death, Dr. Frank B. Hu, chair of the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said in a Harvard Health Publishing article in 2020.
Having too much saturated fat in your diet can lead to spikes in your cholesterol levels and increase your chances of heart disease and stroke, according to the American Heart Association. Full-fat dairy tends to be high in saturated fat.
