Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has focused his attention on changing the way Americans eat.

From the dyes in Froot Loops cereal to the seed oils in chicken nuggets, Kennedy — who is President Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) — has long spoken out against the ingredients in the He says they harm Americans’ health.

“We are betraying our children by poisoning the (food) industries,” Kennedy said at a rally in November, when he ended his independent presidential bid and endorsed Donald Trump.

But if Kennedy hopes to target junk food, he’ll first have to change the country’s food regulations — and fight back against Big Food.

“What he’s suggesting is based on the food industry,” said Marion Nestle, a former nutrition professor at New York University. “Will Trump support him on that? I’ll believe it when I see it.”

The former environmental lawyer – who must still face confirmation by the Senate – is considered a controversial selection by many because of his history of making baseless health claims, including that vaccines can cause autism and WiFi technology causes cancer.

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Yet some of his ideas about reforming the FDA have gained support from health experts, lawmakers and concerned consumers — including some Democrats.

Kennedy “will help make America healthy again by shaking up HHS and the FDA,” Colorado’s Democratic governor, Jared Polis, wrote on social media this week while welcoming his nomination. After receiving public backlash for his praise, Polis gathered support by writing on social media that “science must remain the cornerstone of our nation’s health policy”.

Leading up to the election, Kennedy – a former Democrat – introduced several ideas to combat chronic diseases under his slogan “Make America Healthy Again”.

He has often advocated eliminating ultra-processed foods – products that contain added fats, starches and sugars, such as frozen pizza, crisps and sugary breakfast cereals, which have been linked to health problems such as cancer, heart disease and diabetes. Are.

He has primarily targeted school lunches, telling Fox News: “We have a generation of kids who are swimming in a toxic soup right now.”

Part of Kennedy’s new mandate will include oversight of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has more than 18,000 employees.

The agency is in charge of ensuring the safety of pharmaceuticals and the US food supply, but has come under criticism in recent years from some lawmakers and consumer groups, who have accused it of a lack of transparency and action on food safety.

The 70-year-old has promised to take on the agency and says sacking staff is part of a “corrupt system”.

“There are entire departments at the FDA, like the Department of Nutrition… that need to go, that are not doing their jobs,” Kennedy told MSNBC this month.

He has also emphasized getting rid of food colors, including Red No. 3, and other additives banned in other countries.

The former Democrat has also highlighted more controversial health issues, including fluoride in drinking water, which he says should be banned entirely, and raw milk, which he believes That there are health benefits despite the increased risk of bacterial contamination.

He has also come after the seed oil, writing on social media that Americans are being “unintentionally poisoned” by products like canola and sunflower oils that are used in fast food.

Many public health experts stand behind Kennedy’s goal of tackling ultra-processed food, which they say the U.S. eats at much higher rates than many other countries.

“It’s thrilling to hear someone arguing for doing something about a chronic disease,” Ms Nestle said.

Dr. Peter Lurie, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit group that advocates for food safety, said Kennedy’s aim to get rid of certain foods and dyes could also be beneficial.

The former FDA official said several food dyes, including Red No. 3 – which is banned in California – should also be blocked by the US government due to concerns about carcinogens.

The FDA has rejected Kennedy’s claim that the US allows thousands of additives that are banned in the EU. A spokesperson said it was necessary to “dig deeper and understand the context behind the numbers” when comparing US and EU rules, which use different methodologies.

But public health experts and former officials said many of Kennedy’s goals were not worthwhile – and in some cases, even harmful.

For example, drinking raw milk that has not been pasteurized — a process that helps kill bacteria — can make people sick or even kill them, research found. Is.

“We know that there is no evidence of any nutritional benefit of any magnitude from non-pasteurization of milk,” Dr. Lurie said.

Jennifer Garner, a professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Michigan, said Kennedy’s proposal to remove fluoride from drinking water could also be problematic, because the low levels of fluoride found in water improve dental health.

Removing it from the water supply would also be outside its jurisdiction, since fluoride levels are regulated by states.

And their claims that the seed oil is helping reverse the obesity epidemic are not based on science, Dr. Lurie said.

“We don’t see any evidence of this. In fact, they appear to be important products to the extent that they replace saturated fats such as butter, he said.

Former officials said Kennedy could still work within the existing US regulatory framework to reform America’s food systems.

Ms. Nestle said Kennedy could address ultra-processed foods by changing the U.S. Dietary Guidelines, which set nutrition standards for industry and federal government programs, including school lunches and military meals.

“He has a huge impact on the food industry,” Ms Nestle said. “It will make a huge difference.”

The guidelines are updated every five years by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and DHHS, which previously said there was not enough evidence against ultra-processed foods.

Nevertheless, officials and nutrition experts raised concerns about the methods by which Kennedy proposed to implement his agenda, including firing the FDA’s nutrition experts.

The move would have a major impact on food security, Ms Liszinski said. “If you lose your top experts, you will have problems,” she said.

Ultimately, Ms. Garner said it is difficult to separate some of Kennedy’s more reasonable food-reform goals from the false health claims he spread.

“There is an opportunity here,” Ms. Garner said.

“But I think there’s reasonable concern based on other issues and how his approach to those issues might play out here.”

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