Latest news with #MakeAmericaHealthyAgain
Miami Herald
an hour ago
- Health
- Miami Herald
Cuts to food benefits stand in the way of RFK Jr.'s goals for a healthier national diet
ALBANY, Ga. - Belinda McLoyd has been thinking about peanut butter. McLoyd, 64, receives a small monthly payment through the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, previously known as food stamps. 'They don't give you that much to work with,' she said. To fit her tight budget, she eats ramen noodles - high on sodium and low on nutrition - multiple times a week. If she had more money, said McLoyd, who has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and heart problems, she'd buy more grapes, melons, chuck roast, ground turkey, cabbage, and turnip greens. That's what she did when lawmakers nearly doubled her SNAP benefit during the pandemic. But now that a GOP-led Congress has approved $186 billion in cuts to the food assistance program through 2034, McLoyd, who worked in retail until she retired in 2016, isn't sure how she will be able to eat any healthy food if her benefits get reduced again. McLoyd said her only hope for healthy eating might be to resort to peanut butter, which she heard 'has everything' in it. 'I get whatever I can get,' said McLoyd, who uses a walker to get around her senior community in southwestern Georgia. 'I try to eat healthy, but some things I can't, because I don't have enough money to take care of that.' The second Trump administration has said that healthy eating is a priority. It released a 'Make America Healthy Again' report citing poor diet as a cause of childhood illnesses and chronic diseases. And it's allowing states - including Arkansas, Idaho, and Utah - to limit purchases of unhealthy food with federal SNAP benefits for the first time in the history of the century-old anti-hunger program. President Donald Trump also signed a tax and spending law on July 4 that will shift costs to states and make it harder for people to qualify for SNAP by expanding existing work requirements. The bill cuts about 20% of SNAP's budget, the deepest cut the program has faced. About 40 million people now receive SNAP payments, but 3 million of them will lose their nutrition assistance completely, and millions more will see their benefits reduced, according to an analysis of an earlier version of the bill by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. Researchers say SNAP cuts run counter to efforts to help people prevent chronic illness through healthy food. 'People are going to have to rely on cheaper food, which we know is more likely to be processed, less healthy,' said Kate Bauer, an associate professor of nutritional sciences at the University of Michigan School of Public Health. 'It's, 'Oh, we care about health - but for the rich people,'' she said. About 47 million people lived in households with limited or uncertain access to food in 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The agency's research shows that people living in food-insecure households are more likely to develop hypertension, arthritis, diabetes, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The Trump administration counters that the funding cuts would not harm people who receive benefits. 'This is total fearmongering,' said White House spokesperson Anna Kelly in an email. 'The bill will ultimately strengthen SNAP for those who need it by implementing cost-sharing measures with states and commonsense work requirements.' McLoyd and other residents in Georgia's Dougherty County, where Albany is located, already face steep barriers to accessing healthy food, from tight budgets and high rates of poverty to a lack of grocery stores and transportation, said Tiffany Terrell, who founded A Better Way Grocers in 2017 to bring fresh food to people who can't travel to a grocery store. More than a third of residents receive SNAP benefits in the rural, majority-Black county that W.E.B. Du Bois described as 'the heart of the Black Belt' and a place 'of curiously mingled hope and pain,' where people struggled to get ahead in a land of former cotton plantations, in his 1903 book, 'The Souls of Black Folk.' Terrell said that a healthier diet could mitigate many of the illnesses she sees in her community. In 2017, she replaced school bus seats with shelves stocked with fruits, vegetables, meats, and eggs and drove her mobile grocery store around to senior communities, public housing developments, and rural areas. But cuts to food assistance will devastate the region, setting back efforts to help residents boost their diet with fruits, vegetables, and other nutritious food and tackle chronic disease, she said. Terrell saw how SNAP recipients like McLoyd ate healthier when food assistance rose during the pandemic. They got eggs, instead of ramen noodles, and fresh meat and produce, instead of canned sausages. Starting in 2020, SNAP recipients received extra pandemic assistance, which corresponded to a 9% decrease in people saying there was sometimes or often not enough food to eat, according to the Institute for Policy Research at Northwestern University. Once those payments ended in 2023, more families had trouble purchasing enough food, according to a study published in Health Affairs in October. Non-Hispanic Black families, in particular, saw an increase in anxiety, the study found. 'We know that even short periods of food insecurity for kids can really significantly harm their long-term health and cognitive development,' said Katie Bergh, a senior policy analyst on the food assistance team at the Center on Budget Policy and Priorities. Cuts to SNAP 'will put a healthy diet even farther out of reach for these families.' The Trump administration said it's boosting healthy eating for low-income Americans through restrictions on what they can buy with SNAP benefits. It has begun approving state requests to limit the purchase of soda and candy with SNAP benefits. 'Thank you to the governors of Indiana, Arkansas, Idaho, Utah, Iowa, and Nebraska for their bold leadership and unwavering commitment to Make America Healthy Again,' said Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in a press release about the requests. 'I call on every governor in the nation to submit a SNAP waiver to eliminate sugary drinks - taxpayer dollars should never bankroll products that fuel the chronic disease epidemic.' Although states have asked for such restrictions in the past, previous administrations, including the first Trump administration, never approved them. Research shows that programs encouraging people to buy healthy food are more effective than regulating what they can buy. Such limits increase stigma on families that receive benefits, are burdensome to retailers, and often difficult to implement, researchers say. 'People make incredibly tough choices to survive,' said Gina Plata-Nino, the deputy director of SNAP at the Food Research & Action Center, a nonprofit advocacy group, and a former senior policy adviser in the Biden administration. 'It's not about soda and candy,' she said. 'It's about access.' Terrell said she is unsure how people will survive if their food benefits are further trimmed. 'What are we thinking people are going to do?' said Terrell of A Better Way Grocers, who also opened a bustling community market last year that sells fresh juices, smoothies, and wellness shots in downtown Albany. 'We'll have people choosing between food and bills.' That's true for Stephen Harrison, 22, whose monthly SNAP benefit supports him, along with his parents and younger brother. During the pandemic, he used the extra assistance to buy strawberries and grapes, but now he comes into A Better Way Grocers to buy an orange when he can. Harrison, who is studying culinary arts at Albany Technical College, said his family budgets carefully to afford meals like pork chops with cornbread and collard greens, but he said that, if his benefits are cut, the family will have to resort to cheaper foods. 'I'd buy hot dogs,' he said with a shrug. Copyright (C) 2025, Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Portions copyrighted by the respective providers.
New York Post
an hour ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Fitness guru Jillian Michaels wants ‘a lot more banned' than food dyes
A famed fitness guru is a fan of the Make America Healthy Again movement and wants to see Robert Kennedy Jr.'s vision come to fruition. Fitness trainer, entrepreneur and media personality Jillian Michaels spoke to Fox News Digital following her speech at the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit in Tampa, Florida. Michaels is an advocate for a complete overhaul of American consumption of food and pharmaceuticals. Advertisement 'I would love to see all the things that Kennedy campaigned on,' Michaels said. 'The MAHA movement, they're up against four of the biggest lobbies in the country. So, Big Ag, Big Food, Big Pharma, Big Insurance.' Michaels also expressed her support for alternative methods of treatment. 'I would love to see psychedelics into the FDA so that it can be used therapeutically for veterans, for people with addiction under medical use,' she said. 6 Jillian Michaels coaches participants on 'The Biggest Loser.' © NBC Universal, Inc. Advertisement 6 Michaels has expressed her support for alternative methods of treatment. Brian Zak/Page Six She also believes ingredient bans should go beyond food dyes. 'Honestly, I would like to see a hell of a lot more banned from our food supply than just red number 40,' she said, referring to the widely used synthetic food dye. Advertisement As changes occur, Michaels acknowledged that all changes won't happen instantly. 'You're certainly not going to get it all overnight, but [what] we need to appreciate is the small wins along the way,' she said. 6 Jillian Michaels speaks at a briefing in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House on May 22, 2025. AP 6 Group photo of 'The Biggest Loser' season 8 contestants. Advertisement However, Michaels encouraged people to take accountability for their own health, 'and ultimately, at the end of the day, which we're not going to get from the government, you can create in your own life by taking agency.' In January, the FDA banned red dye — called Red 3, or erythrosine — from foods, dietary supplements and ingested medicines after being linked to cancer, as Fox News Digital previously reported. Food manufacturers have until 2027 to remove that dye from their products, while drug manufacturers will have until the following year. 6 Jillian Michaels and Bob Harper of 'The Biggest Loser.' 6 Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaking at a 'Make Oklahoma Healthy Again' event on June 26, 2025.. REUTERS Artificial food colorings were originally manufactured from coal tar, while most synthetic food dyes today are made from petroleum, or crude oil, according to the American Chemical Society (ACS) website. As the HHS noted in a press release in April, among the steps to be taken are 'establishing a national standard and timeline for the food industry to transition from petrochemical-based dyes to natural alternatives; initiating the process to revoke authorization for two synthetic food colorings — Citrus Red No. 2 and Orange B — within the coming months; and working with industry to eliminate six remaining synthetic dyes — FD&C Green No. 3, FD&C Red No. 40, FD&C Yellow No. 5, FD&C Yellow No. 6, FD&C Blue No. 1, and FD&C Blue No. 2 — from the food supply by the end of next year.'
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Health
- Daily Mail
Trump's FDA chief reveals the unusual snack he 'overdoes' on daily and challenges to MAHA's war on food dyes
Trump's FDA Director Dr. Marty Makary shared thrilling insights into his crusade as one of the three government musketeers in the 'Make America Healthy Again' or 'MAHA' movement. Makary was confirmed in March to his post with a vote of 56 - 44, and now serves alongside Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and former longtime TV doctor turned Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz. Makary revealed the daily must haves in his diet, the sound advice he used to share with his patients during his time as a doctor, and what he enjoys about his government service thus far in a stop on Capitol Hill Wednesday. On his diet, Makrary noted that he has ' juice in the morning', then followed by 'coconut-coated cashews' which he often has for lunch. 'Sometimes I'll overdose on those, but I would rather do that than some of the other foods.' He also added that with the demands of his schedule, filled with meetings and conferences, eating healthy is 'always a struggle.' 'In the evening, my wife cooks and she buys her groceries from The Italian Store in Arlington, where they import their pastas. So there are Italian grains, with fiber.' 'We also get food from a place called The Organic Butcher. We had burgers last night that were delicious.' Makary also revealed that during his time as a doctor, some of his most common advice to patients was the simplest. 'Cook, rather than buy pre-processed foods,' and 'whole foods are better.' The Daily Mail caught up with Makary exclusively as he leads the war on food dyes, which is a hallmark of the MAHA platform. A Daily Mail poll conducted earlier this month showed that most Americans are opposed to the use of synthetic food dyes. The survey of more than 1,000 registered voters, conducted July 9 and 10, found that more than half of Americans believe food dyes are dangerous. Nearly half agree that food dyes cause cancer, more than eight in 10 support warning labels for dyes, and over half support banning food dyes entirely. Yet, major producers such as the Mars candy company have been reluctant to make adjustments in line with consumer sentiment. A change to that attitude may be on the horizon. Makary told the Daily Mail Wednesday that a meeting held earlier this week with the mammoth confectioner was a 'good meeting', adding that it was 'productive,' without sharing details out of respect for confidentiality. Asked about concerns raised by consumers in the Daily Mail's polling over the potential cost difference between products with natural dyes as opposed to artificial ones, Makary pointed to international markets as the example. 'In other countries, they sell these products, and you don't see a price delta,' Makary noted. 'So in Canada, parts of Europe, there are cereals and candies made without the same are artificial dyes that we have here in the United States, and you don't see a higher price,' Makary added. During his earlier speech, Makary noted that the FDA under the current administration has been approving natural food dyes - alternatives to problematic petroleum food dyes - at a warp speed. 'We approved four natural food dyes in the last three months. We're about three and a half months into the job, we've been busy,' Makary stated. 'Normally we'd approve a natural food diet once every couple years. We've approved four, and we'll probably approve two more in the next couple months,' he continued, teasing the future moves. The Daily Mail also asked Makary what the true drivers of change in the food system really are, wether it was government intervention, consumer demand, or a mix of the two. In the last few months, major fast food chains have announced changed in their processes and menus. In-N-Out Burger revealed in May that it would stop using synthetic food dyes including Yellow 5 and Red 40. Steak n Shake has made two MAHA friendly announcements in recent months. In January before the Trump Administration formally came into office, the chain announced that they will use beef tallow instead of vegetable oil to cook their fries, chicken tenders, and onion rings. Just last week, the chain announced that it would start selling glass bottled Coca-cola made with real cane sugar starting on August 1st. 'I think there's a movement, and I think they see the value of getting these petroleum based dyes out' Makary noted, commenting on changes already in the works by major corporations. 'I think they've been enthusiastic in ... taking initiative and being a part of this group enthusiastically, sometimes with schedules more aggressive than we've even asked. So I do think that there's a movement around this.' Makary told the Daily Mail that one of the favorite parts of his time in government service thus far was that 'one of the greatest opportunities in government is to convene people', adding that the 'community power can really turn into some good things.'
Daily Tribune
a day ago
- Business
- Daily Tribune
Coca-Cola plans US cane sugar alternative after Trump push
Coca-Cola on Tuesday said it would release a version of Coke in the United States made with US-grown real cane sugar, a move requested by President Donald Trump. 'We're going to be bringing a Coke sweetened with US cane sugar into the market this fall, and I think that will be an enduring option for consumers,' said CEO James Quincey on a call with analysts. The company currently uses high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) for many of its US products -- a sweetener that has long drawn criticism from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his 'Make America Healthy Again' agenda. Trump last week said that the company had agreed to use cane sugar in the United States version of Coke. 'This will be a very good move by them -- You'll see. It's just better!' Trump wrote on Truth Social. Coca-Cola at the time did not confirm the move even if it said it appreciated Trump's 'enthusiasm' for its brand. In announcing the new option, Quincey insisted that the main Coke product would still be made with corn syrup, with the cane sugar version offered as an alternative. Mexican Coke -- which is made with cane sugar -- is often sold at a premium in US stores and prized for its more 'natural' flavor. The US president did not explain what motivated his push for the change.
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
Forbes Daily: General Motors Takes A More Than $1 Billion Tariff Hit
The housing market may be tipping back toward buyers, but a new proposal endorsed by President Donald Trump Tuesday could give sellers a financial boost. Trump suggested he supports legislation that would eliminate taxes on capital gains from home sales. Currently, single filers are exempt from the taxes on gains of $250,000 or less if they sell their primary residence, or up to $500,000 for married couples filing jointly. But those caps haven't been updated in more than two decades, and proponents of the policy argue the exemptions haven't kept up with rising costs. More than a third of homeowners, or 29 million, own enough equity in their home that they could exceed the $250,000 cap, the National Association of Realtors recently found. President Donald Trump with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba AFP via Getty Images The U.S. and Japan reached a trade agreement under which the U.S. trading partner will face a 15% tariff—down from a previously threatened 25%—President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba called the deal a 'new golden era' in the relationship between the two countries, and Japanese automakers and U.S. stock futures rose after the announcement. General Motors took a more than $1 billion tariff-induced hit to its profits last quarter, the company said in its latest earnings report, following similar losses reported by Stellantis, which produces Chrysler and Jeep vehicles. GM projects to lose between $4 to $5 billion from the import taxes for the year, and expects that the third quarter will see a greater impact due to 'indirect tariff costs.' This is a published version of the Forbes Daily newsletter, you can sign-up to get Forbes Daily in your inbox here. Assembly of glass Coca-Cola bottles at a site near Paris AFP via Getty Images After pressure from President Donald Trump, Coca-Cola said it would make a version of its signature drink with cane sugar rather than corn syrup, as the 'Make America Healthy Again' movement has criticized the use of artificial ingredients. But the soda giant isn't fully replacing corn syrup in its products, a move that would have had a major impact on U.S. agriculture as the country produces 7.3 million tons of corn syrup each year, according to Reuters. The Trump Administration's trade deal with China that lowered the tariff rates on most Chinese goods will likely be extended past its August 12 deadline, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Tuesday, but higher levies on other countries are still expected to take effect on August 1. The China trade deal reduced the combined 145% tariff rate down to 30%, a rate Bessent suggested the administration will likely keep. WEALTH + ENTREPRENEURSHIP Before Jeffrey Epstein's second arrest and death in prison, the convicted sex offender owned a property empire stretching from Paris to New Mexico, where many of the alleged crimes took place. Between 2021 and 2023, those properties were all sold for roughly $160 million, with Epstein's estate seeming to have kept roughly $50 million, and the rest being paid out to a fund set up to financially compensate his victims. Controversial crypto businessman Justin Sun will be the next billionaire to launch into space, as one of six crew members on a Blue Origin mission after paying $28 million for a seat. Sun, who helped finance the Trump family's crypto venture World Liberty Financial, is facing civil charges in the U.S. for fraud and market manipulation, but his SEC lawsuit was halted earlier this year. TECH + INNOVATION Forbes Under 30 alum Neil Parikh turned mattress company Casper into a billion-dollar business, and now, his new startup Slingshot AI is building a chatbot designed to replicate the experience of talking to a therapist. As many people face limited access to mental health care, Slingshot officially launched its AI-powered therapy bot called Ash Tuesday, and announced a fundraising round that brings its total funding to $93 million. MONEY + POLITICS As the Trump Administration faces continued pressure to release information about Jeffrey Epstein, House Speaker Mike Johnson is sending the chamber to summer recess early, canceling Thursday's votes before Democrats could force another on releasing the remaining files on the disgraced financier. Johnson accused Democrats of playing 'political games,' but he still faces a new bipartisan proposal that could force a vote when the House returns from recess in September. SPORTS + ENTERTAINMENT Ozzy Osbourne performs during half-time of the game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Buffalo Bills in September 2022. Getty Images Legendary Black Sabbath frontman and solo artist Ozzy Osbourne died at 76, his family confirmed, just weeks after his final performance with his old heavy metal band. The family didn't share the cause of his death, but Osbourne revealed he had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2020. DAILY COVER STORY Vibe Coding Turned This Swedish AI Unicorn Into The Fastest Growing Software Startup Ever Lovable CEO Anton Osika (right) and CTO Fabian Hedin Sebastian Nevols for Forbes Lovable, Sweden's new AI unicorn, has become the world's fastest-growing software startup by using AI to enable millions of non-coders to instantly turn their ideas into websites, apps and online side hustles. In June alone, around 750,000 projects—apps, websites, entire businesses—were built, hosted and launched with a handful of descriptive sentences and a few clicks on Lovable. This isn't like the clunky website builders of yesteryear, responsible for zillions of personal sites; nor are they sketches or wireframes that might look cool but aren't functional. Lovable projects, spun up in minutes thanks to generative AI, are actual working products with features ranging from email newsletters to payments via Stripe. The company hit $100 million in subscription revenue (on an annualized basis) in just eight months since its launch last November, eclipsing other rocketships like Israeli cloud security startup Wiz and San Francisco-based HR platform Deel. Now, a $200 million fundraising round that values the 45-person firm at $1.8 billion should help Lovable fend off competition in the so-called 'vibe coding' market from well-funded startup rivals and AI giants like OpenAI and Google alike. WHY IT MATTERS Cofounder and CEO Anton Osika, who started Lovable in September 2023, can't do much about this competition other than to stick to building products that humans love and hop between AI models for the best and cheapest. 'Humans understand humans,' he says, 'and Lovable is this enabling tool to make ideas come to life in minutes.' MORE AI 'Vibe Coder' Lovable Is Sweden's Latest Unicorn FACTS + COMMENTS A 'heat dome' is already affecting tens of millions of people across the South and Midwest, and it's expected to linger for weeks. The phenomenon could cause temperatures to surpass triple digits in a number of cities: More than 60 million: The number of people under hot weather advisories 19: The number of states with heat advisories, with more intense extreme heat watches in Wisconsin, Iowa and Illinois More than 2,300: How many people died of causes tied to heat in 2023 STRATEGY + SUCCESS If you're anxious about switching to a new industry in your career, the transition might be less intimidating than you think. Take time to reflect on what you truly want, and focus on building connections with people in that industry. Think about which of your skills could be considered transferable—such as problem solving and collaboration—and be sure to highlight them on your résumé. VIDEO The U.S. continued to slide in the rankings of the world's most powerful passports, falling to No. 10. Which country ranks first? A. Japan B. Singapore C. Germany D. Norway Check your answer. Thanks for reading! This edition of Forbes Daily was edited by Sarah Whitmire and Chris Dobstaff.
