RFK Jr promotes food company he says will make Americans healthy; their meals are ultraprocessed
Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr on Monday praised a company that makes $7-a-pop meals that are delivered directly to the homes of Medicaid and Medicare enrollees.
He even thanked Mom's Meals for sending taxpayer-funded meals 'without additives" to the homes of sick or elderly Americans. The spreads include chicken bacon ranch pasta for dinner and French toast sticks with fruit or ham patties.
'This is really one of the solutions for making our country healthy again,' Kennedy said in the video, posted to his official health secretary account, after he toured the company's Oklahoma facility last week.
But an Associated Press review of Mom's Meals menu, including the ingredients and nutrition labels, shows that the company's offerings are the type of heat-and-eat, ultraprocessed foods that Kennedy routinely criticizes for making people sick.
The meals contain chemical additives that would render them impossible to recreate at home in your kitchen, said Marion Nestle, a nutritionist at New York University and food policy expert, who reviewed the menu for The AP. Many menu items are high in sodium, and some are high in sugar or saturated fats, she said.
'It is perfectly possible to make meals like this with real foods and no ultra-processing additives but every one of the meals I looked at is loaded with such additives,' Nestle said. 'What's so sad is that they don't have to be this way. Other companies are able to produce much better products, but of course they cost more.'
Mom's Meals do not have the artificial, petroleum dyes that Kennedy has pressured companies to remove from products, she noted.
Mom's Meals said in an emailed response that its food products 'do not include ingredients that are commonly found in ultra-processed foods.' The company does not use synthetic food dyes, high fructose corn syrup, certain sweeteners or synthetic preservatives that are banned in Europe, said Teresa Roof, a company spokeswoman.
The meals are a 'healthy alternative' to what many people would find in their grocery stores, said Andrew Nixon, U.S. Health and Human Services spokesman, in response to questions about Mom's Meals.
Mom's Meals is one of several companies across the U.S. that deliver 'medically tailored' at-home meals. The meal programs are covered by Medicaid for some enrollees, including people who are sick with cancer or diabetes, as well as some older Americans who are enrolled in certain Medicare health insurance plans.
Patients recently discharged from the hospital can also have the meals delivered, according to the company's website.
It's unclear how much federal taxpayers spend on providing meals through Medicaid and Medicare every year. An investigation by STAT news last year found that some states were spending millions of dollars to provide medically tailored meals to Medicaid enrollees that were marketed as healthy and 'dietician approved." But many companies served up meals loaded with salt, fat or sugar — all staples of an unhealthy American's diet, the report concluded.
Defining ultraprocessed foods can be tricky. Most U.S. foods are processed, whether it's by freezing, grinding, fermentation, pasteurization or other means. Foods created through industrial processes and with ingredients such as additives, colors and preservatives that you couldn't duplicate in a home kitchen are considered the most processed.
Kennedy has said healthier U.S. diets are key to his vision to 'Make America Healthy Again.' His call for Americans to increase whole foods in their diets has helped Kennedy build his unique coalition of Trump loyalists and suburban moms who have branded themselves as 'MAHA."
In a recent social media post where he criticized the vast amount of ultraprocessed foods in American diets, Kennedy urged Americans to make healthier choices.
'This country has lost the most basic of all freedoms — the freedom that comes from being healthy," Kennedy said.
© Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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Yomiuri Shimbun
5 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
Food Airdropped into Gaza as Starvation Deaths Rise
JERUSALEM – Airdrops of food have resumed in Gaza, said Israel and the United Arab Emirates on Saturday, as deaths from starvation in the besieged enclave spread. Pallets of flour, sugar and canned food were dropped, the Israeli military said. The foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates, which has been involved in previous airdrops, said, 'We will ensure essential aid reaches those most in need, whether through land, air or sea.' A growing group of governments has volunteered to join airdrop missions into Gaza immediately to relieve the deepening crisis, but aid agencies have described the approach as an inadequate response and an Israeli attempt to whitewash a policy of deliberate starvation. The Israel Defense Forces on Saturday called that a 'false claim.' Israel said in a written statement it would also establish humanitarian corridors to 'enable the safe movement of UN convoys delivering food and medicine to the population,' an apparent reversal of the Netanyahu government's policy of restricting U.N. operations in the enclave. Israel is under blistering international criticism for its blockade of Gaza as images of dead and malnourished Palestinian children circulate around the world. Israel blocked aid from entering the enclave in March and has restricted food distribution by U.N. agencies since May. Israeli officials say U.N. aid often falls into the hands of Hamas militants. U.N. and U.S. officials have rejected the claim. Still, Israel allowed aid to enter in late May, in a system run by the U.S.-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. Critics say the aid has been insufficient to the need; distribution has been marred by violence. Roughly a thousand people seeking help have been shot to death, allegedly by Israeli forces, near distribution sites. With conditions worsening, foreign officials say, they need to resort to airdrops, a costly and inefficient means of delivery. 'Jordan is ready to help the people in Gaza by any means, whether it's land convoys or airdrops or anything,' said a Jordanian official, who, like others in this story, spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive matter. 'People are hungry.' British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the country was 'working urgently with the Jordanian authorities to get British aid onto planes and into Gaza.' 'The images of starvation and desperation in Gaza are utterly horrifying,' Starmer wrote Friday in the Mirror newspaper. 'News that Israel will allow countries to airdrop aid into Gaza has come far too late – but we will do everything we can to get aid in via this route.' Starmer discussed airdrops in phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, the British government said. 'The three leaders talked about the situation in Gaza, which they agreed is appalling,' the government said in a statement. 'The Prime Minister set out how the UK will also be taking forward plans to work with partners such as Jordan to air drop aid and evacuate children requiring medical assistance.' Macron said Thursday that France would recognize a Palestinian state. On Monday, more than two dozen mostly European countries condemned Israel's restrictions on aid shipments and the killings of Palestinians trying to reach food. Germany and Spain are considering joining the effort, according to a person with knowledge of the discussions. The foreign ministry of France, which has participated in previous airdrops, did not respond to requests for comment. The first airdrop on Saturday was 'aimed at improving the humanitarian response in the Gaza Strip, and to refute the false claim of deliberate starvation in the Gaza Strip,' the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement. An Israeli military official, speaking to reporters, acknowledged this week that Gaza was facing a 'lack of food security' but denied there was famine. Airdrops could offer an emergency stopgap to those on the verge of death, aid professionals say, but they're unlikely to provide more than a small fraction of the daily needs of a population of more than 2 million people, many of whom are on the edge of starvation. Nearly a third of Gazans had not eaten for several days, the U.N.'s World Food Program said this week. More than 62,000 metric tons of food are required every month to cover basic humanitarian needs, the U.N. said Friday. That's about 120 trucks per day. Nearly 600 trucks were sent into Gaza in the past week, the Israeli military said Saturday, or about 85 per day. Humanitarian and military analysts say airdrops should be used only as a last resort, in areas that are otherwise inaccessible. It's unclear what type of aircraft will be used. A C-130 plane can carry about 14 tons of aid; some trucks can carry more than 25. Jordan has coordinated hundreds of airdrop missions since the start of the war in October 2023 using its own planes as well as ones from the United Arab Emirates and France, but missions have been criticized for dropping food in the ocean and crushing people to death. In one instance, a pallet crashed through a roof and killed five. Critics say airdrops could cause more chaos, injuries or death, and it's not clear why dropping food from a plane makes it less likely to be stolen by Hamas. Philippe Lazzarini, head of the U.N. agency for Palestinians, said streamlining truck distribution would be far more efficient. 'Airdrops will not reverse the deepening starvation,' he wrote on X. 'They are expensive, inefficient & can even kill starving civilians. It is a distraction & screensmoke. A manmade hunger can only be addressed by political will. Lift the siege.' Right-wing politicians in Israel have long criticized U.N. agencies for allegedly aiding Palestinian militants. Calls within Israel to dismantle U.N.-led aid distribution in Gaza have grown during the war. U.N. officials and Western diplomats routinely dispute the allegations. A bureau of the U.S. Agency for International Development has found no evidence of systematic theft by Hamas of U.S.-funded humanitarian supplies, Reuters reported Friday. Hamas-led fighters attacked communities and a music festival in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 more back to Gaza as hostages. Israel responded with a military campaign that has flattened much of the enclave, displaced nearly the entire population and killed more than 59,700 people. After Israel's barring of nearly all food and medical supplies into Gaza in early March, some delivery resumed in late May. Most has been through the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, a group created by former CIA officials and headquartered in Delaware. Israel has allowed the foundation to move aid into Gaza more easily than U.N. agencies. Much of the aid is dried food that requires water and fuel to cook. Both are in short supply after Israel targeted water infrastructure in Gaza. The foundation was initially supposed to vet recipients to prevent aid from falling into the hands of Hamas, according to its early plans, but in practice, it has left packets of food in open fields for civilians to pick up. Distribution sites have frequently seen stampedes as the parents of starving children fight for food. Israeli soldiers have shot into the crowds with guns, witnesses say. Israeli military officials say they are reviewing incidents of alleged shooting and acknowledge that its soldiers fire 'warning shots' at approaching crowds. The foundation has delivered 90 million meals in the past two months – less than a meal per day per person. The foundation, backed by Israel and the Trump administration, and U.N. agencies in recent weeks have accused each other of being responsible for the starvation crisis. The foundation and Israeli officials say the U.N. has left aid sitting at the Gaza border, and whatever convoys it dispatches are mobbed by civilians as soon as they enter Gaza. The foundation, whose convoys are escorted by armed mercenaries, said this week it had said it would deliver the U.N. food packages free of charge, but the offer hasn't been accepted. The World Food Program on Friday released a list of obstacles to its work, including the difficulty of getting spare parts into Gaza for its trucks and the dearth of drivers approved by Israel to carry food into the enclave. The U.N. agency had requested permission for 138 aid convoys to collect cargo from the holding area, it said, but Israel approved only 76. After the trucks were loaded, the agency said, convoys waited up to 46 hours for permission to travel along a few approved routes. 'Each delay to aid convoys entering Gaza means more starving people gathering along known routes hoping to intercept trucks transporting food assistance,' the agency said in a statement. 'When aid trucks are held at checkpoints or rerouted multiple times, WFP teams and crowding civilians are exposed to significant risk: active hostilities, drone surveillance, sniper fire, and bombardments.'
Japan Today
19-07-2025
- Japan Today
More elderly Americans choking to death
Dr. Henry Heimlich describes the maneuver he developed to help clear obstructions from the windpipes of choking victims, during an interview in his home in Cincinnati on Feb 5, 2014. By MIKE STOBBE It was the scariest choking incident David Palumbo had ever seen. The 88-year-old man had been dining at a Providence, Rhode Island, Italian restaurant in September 2019. Now he was unconscious, with a piece of bread lodged in his windpipe. Precious minutes went by as first responders were unable to help him with CPR or the Heimlich maneuver. In an ambulance on the way to the hospital, the elderly man's skin was blue, and firefighters worried he was going to die. Palumbo — a fire department captain — used a scissors-like device called Magill forceps to pull the bread from the man's throat. 'We get a lot of calls in the city for choking,' many of which are resolved before emergency responders even get there, Palumbo added. 'This was by far the worst one I've been on in my career." Fortunately, the man survived and made a full recovery, he said. But many elderly people do not. Each year, choking claims the lives of more than 4,100 Americans who are 65 or older. It's the most vulnerable age group, accounting for about three-quarters of U.S. choking deaths, according to federal health statistics. The death rate has been relatively steady, but the number has risen, as the size of the nation's retirement-age population grows. In response, a number of companies are marketing antichoking devices to the elderly. Medical professionals have been debating whether to endorse the products, sold under the names LifeVac, SaveLix, VitalVac and the Dechoker. Dr. Nathan Charlton, a University of Virginia professor of emergency medicine who advises the American Red Cross on first aid, said there is limited evidence for the products and that the Red Cross is still evaluating them. Here's a look at choking and the best ways to prevent choking deaths. Choking occurs when food or some other object partially or totally blocks the windpipe, preventing oxygen from reaching the lungs. Telltale signs include someone reaching for their neck and losing the ability to speak normally. Brain damage can occur after four minutes, and death can come just a few minutes later. Older adults are at higher risk for a number of reasons. As people get older, mouth and throat muscles can weaken. Older people also make less saliva. Some chronic diseases and medications can make swallowing even harder. Dentures can be a choking risk. Choking risk can be reduced by cutting food into small pieces, chewing food slowly, drinking plenty of liquids with meals, and not laughing or talking at the same time you are chewing and swallowing. When someone is choking, you can try perhaps the oldest form of first aid: back slaps. There's also the Heimlich maneuver, named after the doctor credited with devising it in the 1970s. It involves standing behind the choking person, wrapping your arms around their abdomen and — with a balled fist — thrusting inward and upward. The idea is that it forces air out of the lungs, and the obstruction with it. The American Red Cross recommends alternating back blows and abdominal thrusts in sets of five. That's for situations in which someone is around to help a choking victim. But what if they are alone? It is possible for someone try to self-administer a Heimlich by thrusting their abdomen against the back of a chair, Charlton said. Makers of some the newer anti-choking devices say that's where their products can make a difference. 'Elderly people probably are not capable of diving on a chair or counter,' said Arthur Lih, the founder and chief executive of LifeVac. They vary in design, but generally the devices look like a face mask attached to a tube or bellows, with a handle at the end. They typically sell for around $30 to $100. A choking person dons the mask, pushes down on the handle and then pulls up. That is supposed to create a suction that would pull out the blockage. Some research suggests at least certain devices can injure the tongue or cause bleeding and swelling in the throat. And the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has reports that some products did not generate enough suction and left people with bruising around the face, lips, and mouth. An injury report led the FDA to do an inspection and issue a warning letter to Dechoker in 2021. Manufacturers note their products are registered with the FDA, but that's not the same as an endorsement. Indeed, the agency last year issued a notice to consumers that said it has not approved antichoking devices sold over the counter, because their safety and effectiveness haven't been established. Lih said the FDA action was in response to the proliferation of antichoking devices entering the market that vary in design and quality. Right now, the consensus — even among antichoking device manufacturers — is that back blows and abdominal thrusts should always be tried first. (The forceps that Palumbo used are not recommended for the general public.) Lih said thousands of nursing homes and emergency response agencies have purchased the newer antichoking devices. One example: The police department in Acworth, Georgia, bought about 75 LifeVac devices after an officer last year used her personal device to save an elderly woman. They are now in every patrol car, said Sgt. Eric Mistretta. Manufacturers claim the products have saved thousands of lives across multiple countries, but it's tricky to document how well they actually work, said Dr. Cody Dunne, a University of Calgary researcher who has tried. The early evidence has come from case reports or small studies that used mannequins and cadavers. 'I think the case is definitely being built,' he said, but more rigorous research is needed. For example, a larger study could compare what happened during choking incidents at nursing homes that stock the devices with those that don't. Dunne noted, however, that evidence for the Heimlich maneuver and back slaps is evolving, too. He co-authored a study last year that found back blows worked better than the Heimlich or chest compressions. 'We're only now getting good evidence on the old choking techniques, let alone these new ones,' he said. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Japan Times
18-07-2025
- Japan Times
U.S. health department hands over Medicaid personal data to ICE
The U.S. health department is giving Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials access to the personal data of 79 million Medicaid enrollees to help them track down immigrants who may not be living legally in the country, it said on Thursday. Giving ICE access to the personal data of Medicaid enrollees marks an escalation in U.S. President Donald Trump's hard-line immigration policies. It may also raise privacy concerns under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, known as HIPAA. A Department of Health and Human Services spokesperson said sharing data between the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees ICE, fell within the department's legal authority. "With respect to the recent data sharing between CMS and DHS, HHS acted entirely within its legal authority — and in full compliance with all applicable laws — to ensure that Medicaid benefits are reserved for individuals who are lawfully entitled to receive them," the spokesperson said. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said the department was exploring an initiative with CMS to ensure people living in the country illegally do not receive Medicaid benefits. The agreement was first reported earlier on Thursday by the Associated Press, which said it was signed on Monday. The Medicaid health program for low income people is jointly funded by the federal government and states. Immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally are not eligible for Medicaid under federal law, but 14 states and the District of Columbia provide coverage for eligible children regardless of immigration status, and seven states and the district do so for adults. "CMS is aggressively cracking down on states that may be misusing federal Medicaid funds to subsidize care for illegal immigrants. This oversight effort — supported by lawful interagency data sharing with DHS — is focused on identifying waste, fraud, and systemic abuse," the HHS spokesperson said. The spokesperson did not address questions from Reuters on the type of data being shared or on how HHS would ensure HIPAA protections are upheld. The AP, citing a copy of the data sharing agreement, said the data included home addresses and ethnicities. The agreement is the latest in a series of moves by the health department in support of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown and comes a week after it widened its interpretation of a law banning most immigrants from receiving federal public benefits.
