Latest news with #Saladino
Yahoo
4 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
RFK Jr. Chugs Raw Milk With Crackpot Doc at White House
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. skipped the champagne when celebrating the release of his agency's Make America Healthy Again report. Instead, the Health and Human Services secretary marked the publication of the error-ridden report—which linked to nonexistent scientific studies—with a shooter of non-pasteurized milk alongside controversial health influencer Dr. Paul Saladino, who pushes an animal-based diet. 'Raw milk shooters at the @WhiteHouse with @RobertKennedyJr,' Saladino, also known as Carnivore MD, posted on X alongside a video of the pair slamming the shots. In the clip, Saladino mentions that the milk is free of glyphosate—a controversial chemical found in pesticides like weed killer Roundup and is also commonly used by farmers. Kennedy has linked the chemical to childhood chronic diseases and has said it is contaminating American food. 'One of the things I know you're thinking a lot about is this huge amount of glyphosate, so we've got glyphosate-free honey and raw milk,' Saladino says. Then the pair clinks glasses, and Saladino thanks Kennedy, with products from his meat-based food brand Lineage Provisions visible in the background. 'Thank you for your work. It's an honor to spend time with you,' Saladino says. 'You too,' Kennedy responds. In March 2015, the World Health Organisation's International Agency on Research into Carcinogens (IARC) announced that glyphosate probably causes a type of cancer called non-Hodgkin lymphoma, which affects the lymphatic system. However, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says glyphosate is 'not likely to be carcinogenic to humans' at exposure levels found in real-world use. In 2023, the National Institutes of Health's National Toxicology Program said that glyphosate is 'unlikely' to be toxic to humans. On the other hand, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said in a March 2024 advisory that 'raw milk can contain a variety of disease-causing pathogens, as demonstrated by numerous scientific studies.' Raw milk is 150 times more likely to cause foodborne illnesses than milk that hasn't been pasteurized, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). It can carry pathogens like Salmonella, E. coli, Listeria, Campylobacter, and Brucella. Drinking it can cause issues ranging from mild gastrointestinal distress to serious conditions like hemolytic uremic syndrome, which stems from E. coli and can lead to kidney failure. Sepsis, or bloodstream infections, can also occur. In an earlier Instagram video, Saladino had bragged about taking his own raw meat lunch to the White House. 'I am in D.C. for the big announcement of the MAHA chronic disease report. I've got a raw milk smoothie in here that is raw milk, blueberries, honey, and raw meat actually,' he said, 'We're taking America back, guys.'
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Why Are Health Influencers Drinking Raw Milk and Honey Shots at the White House?
Health influencers flocked to the White House last week for a press event celebrating the release of a report by Donald Trump's 'Make America Healthy Again' or 'MAHA' commission, chaired by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The 72-page document, titled 'The MAHA Report: Make Our Children Healthy Again,' asserts that 'today's children are the sickest generation in American history in terms of chronic disease' and pointed to its analysis of drivers of childhood chronic disease. While parts of the report blame poor nutrition, environmental chemicals, and over-medicalization, other parts contradict scientific consensus. This, unsurprisingly, did not dampen the mood at the White House, which has become a gathering place for pro-Trump propagandists and MAGA influencers. In one social media video, Paul Saladino, M.D., an influencer with nearly three million followers who has advocated for an animal-based diet and is otherwise known as Carnivore MD, filmed from a room of podcasters, boasting that along with interviewing Kennedy, he had also packed his own raw milk and raw meat lunch. 'I am in D.C. in for the big announcment of the MAHA chronic disease report,' said Saladino, holding up a flask. 'I've got a raw milk smoothie in here that is raw milk, blueberries, honey, and raw meat actually,' he added, 'We're taking America back, guys.'In a separate Instagram post, shared by Lineage Provisions, a supplement and meat stick company co-owned by Saladino, shared a video of Saladino taking raw milk and honey shots with podcaster Max Lugavere and Brigham Buhler, during which Lugavere chuckles, 'We're about to trigger so many food scientists.' A surge of raw milk evangelism among conservatives, anti-establishment figures like Kennedy, and tradwives and homesteaders on social media has led to MAGA's most recent anti-science battle. Although there's little evidence of the health benefits of drinking unpasteurized milk, the risks are well-documented. People who drink raw milk are at risk of contracting the H5N1 avian influenza virus, E. coli, Salmonella, and Campylobacter bacterial infections. Between 2009 and 2014, raw milk and cheese — which are only consumed by 3.2 percent and 1.6 percent of the U.S. population, respectively — are responsible for causing 96 percent of illnesses from dairy contamination, according to a 2017 study in Emerging Infectious Diseases, a peer-reviewed journal published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Before the introduction of commercial pasteurization in urban areas in the early 1900s, milkborne illnesses including diphtheria, tuberculosis, and 'summer diarrhea' were a serious threat to public health. And to be clear, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) explained in a March 2024 advisory: 'raw milk can contain a variety of disease-causing pathogens, as demonstrated by raw milk can contain a variety of disease-causing pathogens, as demonstrated by numerous scientific studies.' However, the rise of raw dairy products's popularity have coincided with a growing distrust of America's health care system. 'People don't trust the [American] health care system — and with good reason,' Céline Gounder, MD, an infectious disease specialist and epidemiologist at New York University and Bellevue Hospital, and editor-at-large for public health at KFF Health News, previously told Rolling Stone. 'It's first and foremost about profit, not caring for patients or cultivating a healthy population.' When people are poorly served by the health care system, Gounder said they seek alternatives like consuming raw milk that give them a sense of control. Now, of course, America's chief health agency — the Department of Health and Human Services — and vital agencies like the FDA and CDC are being overseen by Kennedy and other allies in his MAHA movement. While the MAHA commission report sought to address many of the nation's health concerns among children — stating the general agreement that poor diet, lifestyle, and exposure to environmental chemicals are harmful — it doesn't address socioeconomic inequalities that lead to chronic illnesses. 'They acknowledge that ultra-processed foods are cheaper, but aren't acknowledging that growing poverty and the wealth gap is leading more people, and children, to relying on cheaper foods,' Carmen Marsit, a professor of environmental health at Emory University, told NPR. The MAHA report also doubts the current vaccine schedule, echoing calls by Kennedy, a longtime vaccine conspiracy theorist who recently admitted that he doesn't think he's qualified to dispense medical advice. Unfortunately, the man pushing alternative medicine over vaccination amid a measles outbreak — and who's plugging dietary choices that will most likely land people on the toilet before they reap any bonafide health benefits — is America's top health official. 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