Latest news with #dietaryguidelines
Fox News
6 days ago
- Health
- Fox News
Extra: The MAHA Movement's War On Red Tape And Junk Food
President Trump has made making America healthy again a goal of his second term. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary are leading that effort by addressing many things, including what is in our food, our dietary guidelines, and what medications are made available. Recently, Dr. Makary joined FOX News Rundown host Dave Anthony to discuss his efforts to help improve America's health. He discussed the importance of removing dyes and other chemicals from our foods, and also why our nation needs to rethink its dietary guidelines that he believes have led to America's obesity problem. Dr. Makary also discussed the dangers of popular energy drinks and gummies containing opioid-like substances that many people may not realize are harmful. We often have to cut interviews short during the week, but we thought you might like to hear the full interview. Today on Fox News Rundown Extra, we will share our entire interview with FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary, allowing you to hear even more of his views on how we can improve the health of Americans and why he says we're paying the price for decades of bad policy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit
ABC News
01-08-2025
- Health
- ABC News
Only 55 per cent of people believe it's easy to access affordable, healthy food, according to new Queensland data
Australian households spend about $240 each week at the supermarket, yet – despite that spend – many are failing to meet national dietary guidelines. According to the latest Woolworths Living Healthy Report, about 40 per cent of the average weekly spend goes towards discretionary foods like chips, chocolate, soft drinks and biscuits. Queensland mother Dammie Tees said she had noticed the price of groceries has gone up. "We shop almost every weekend and have a list for reference to keep costs down," she said. "Prices are definitely higher, but you can eat well without spending a lot, you just need to be intentional. "I prep in bulk and freeze meals so nothing goes to waste." New data from Health and Wellbeing Queensland, which surveyed 500 people, also showed only half believed it was easy to access affordable, healthy food. However, dietician Rebecca Farletti said a family of four could eat healthily for about $200 a week. "There is a misperception that 'healthy' is more expensive, but we know if we look at the cost per serve, you're saving money," she said. "With discretionary items, you're spending 70 cents per serve, but with vegetables you can halve that amount, and they can be just as tasty and much better for you." The Health and Wellbeing Queensland research showed one quarter of people had reduced their portion sizes in the past six months because they couldn't afford enough food, while 22 per cent skipped meals due to financial pressure. Over that period, about 23 per cent of the state's children ate smaller portions because there wasn't enough food, 12 per cent of children went to school at least once without breakfast and one in five found it difficult to access affordable and healthy food. In response, Ms Farletti created a daily $200 weekly meal plan to feed a family of four breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks each day. "We need to get back to basics. There are a lot of simple swaps we can do to help save," she said. The plan includes dinners like fully-loaded spaghetti bolognaise, curry, and homemade beef burgers and chips, salad and chicken for lunches and cereal, eggs and toast for breakfast. Ms Farletti recommended writing a meal plan, reusing ingredients, looking for specials, cooking in bulk and beefing up recipes with chickpeas and lentils to save. "My number one tip would be to buy more veggies, including frozen and canned which are great value, and farmers' markets are a fantastic source of fresh, local, in-season foods for a great price," Ms Farletti said. "If you're shopping in line with the guidelines and getting back to basics, you're getting more bang for your buck in terms of how many meals you can cook ... and those foods will keep you full and give you the energy you need." Legumes — which only make up 3 per cent of the average Aussies weekly shop — are a key ingredient in Ms Tees's family meals. "Beans and legumes are part of our Nigerian culture," she said. "They're full of protein, high in fibre, and are affordable. It's one way we feed our family and stay healthy." There's a push from health groups for a national nutrition policy to coordinate food access, affordability and health promotion to bring Australia in line with global best practice models. "You should be able to eat well no matter who you are or where you live," Ms Farletti said. Dietitians Australia is calling for access to Medicare-funded dietician visits to be expanded and for a levy to be introduced on sugary drinks. It would be used to help fund a subsidy on healthy groceries, especially now poor diet is the country's leading preventable cause of chronic illness, ahead of smoking. In the UK, it was recently announced supermarkets and takeaway shops could be fined if they don't sell healthier food, under new government plans to tackle obesity. In France, low-income families receive fruit and vegetable vouchers, while in Chile, packaged foods high in sugar, salt or fat must carry a warning label. In 2025, Spain introduced a law requiring primary and secondary schools to serve fruit and vegetables daily, and fish at least once a week. In Hungary, mandatory price caps and cuts have been made in supermarkets in recent years, and the European Union runs the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme which provides funding to distribute free fruit and vegetables to students. TikTok food reviewer Shoggy said he found cooking healthy meals "takes more time, money and planning ". "I always look for wholefoods, fresh stuff, but honestly, it's getting expensive. I'm paying a lot more for the same meals," he said. "It's shocking [that Australians spend 40 per cent of our shop on junk food] but I understand it because it feels cheaper and easier and more affordable for many of us. "I go to weekend markets [and] farmers' markets and try to get fresh ingredients from there to stay healthy."
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
One Way of Drinking Coffee Could Help You Live Longer, Study Finds
Take your coffee black, and it could help you live longer: That's according to a new study that found coffee drinkers tend to live longer, but only those who put little or no sugar and saturated fat in their beverages. This notion coffee reduces the chance of an early death has been around for a while. Here the study team, led by researchers from Tufts University, wanted to look specifically at whether what you add to your coffee makes a difference. "Few studies have examined how coffee additives could impact the link between coffee consumption and mortality risk, and our study is among the first to quantify how much sweetener and saturated fat are being added," says epidemiologist Bingjie Zhou from Tufts University. "Our results align with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans which recommend limiting added sugar and saturated fat." Related: The team crunched the stats on 46,332 US adults aged 20 or over, recorded in government health surveys, over the course of 9-11 years on average. In that time, 7,074 people died – deaths which were then cross-referenced against coffee consumption. Coffee drinkers showed a notably lower risk of all-cause mortality, the researchers found, but when more than a little sugar and saturated fat (as found in full-cream milk or cream) was added to the mix, that statistical significance went away. Overall, drinking black coffee or coffee with very low sugar and fat content was linked to a 14 percent reduction in the chance of an earlier death, compared to drinking no coffee at all. Between two or three cups a day seems to be the sweet spot. While the researchers did factor in variables that might have affected mortality rates – including exercise levels, alcohol intake, age, sex, and education level – the study isn't thorough enough to prove direct cause and effect. There may still be unknown variables influencing both coffee drinking and all-cause mortality. However, the data here does show a strong association, and does fit in with previous research into the health benefits of coffee. This study suggests that caffeine drives those benefits, as decaffeinated coffee drinkers saw no difference in mortality rates, and that sugar, milk, and cream might dilute the positive effects. "The health benefits of coffee might be attributable to its bioactive compounds, but our results suggest that the addition of sugar and saturated fat may reduce the mortality benefits," says Fang Fang Zhang from Tufts University. There's plenty more still to look into here, not least how the many different components of coffee might be protecting against an early death. There are likely to be numerous factors involved – including when you actually drink the stuff, as shown by a study published at the start of the year. This new research is particularly helpful in that it isolates the coffee itself from anything else we may throw into it, which isn't the case for all studies like this – with each study often focusing on an angle of its own. "Coffee is among the most-consumed beverages in the world, and with nearly half of American adults reporting drinking at least one cup per day, it's important for us to know what it might mean for health," says Zhang. The research has been published in The Journal of Nutrition. Mediterranean Diet Could Protect Against a Common Form of Liver Disease Disordered Eating vs Eating Disorders: What's The Difference? Parkinson's Disease Might Not Start in The Brain, Study Finds
The Independent
18-06-2025
- Health
- The Independent
US to ‘drop guidance' on daily alcohol consumption limits
Federal health and agriculture officials are reportedly planning to revise the long-standing guidance on daily alcohol consumption limits in the new U.S. Dietary Guidelines. The new guidelines are expected to include a brief statement encouraging moderation or limiting alcohol intake due to associated health risks. Currently, the guidelines advise women to consume one drink or less per day and men two drinks or less, with a 'drink' defined by specific volumes for wine, spirits, and beer. The proposed changes come amidst recent research highlighting a rise in cancer and liver disease deaths linked to alcohol use, with excessive drinking contributing to approximately 178,000 deaths annually. Critics, such as Eva Greenthal from the Center for Science in the Public Interest, expressed concern that more general language could be unhelpful and obscure the risks of even moderate drinking, particularly for breast cancer.
The Independent
18-06-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Bottom's up? US will no longer tell people exactly what the safe amount to drink is, report claims
Federal health and agriculture officials are reportedly planning to drop the long-standing guidance that Americans limit their alcohol consumption to just one or two drinks a day. Citing three sources familiar with the matter, Reuters said Wednesday that the new U.S. Dietary Guidelines were expected to include a 'brief' statement that encourages people to drink in moderation or limit intake due to health risks. It remains unclear what that might look like, but another source familiar with the process said that the update was to ensure the guidelines reflect only the strongest evidence. However, the guidelines are still in development, the sources noted. They are updated every five years and may be released as soon as this month. The Independent's request for comment from the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Human Services was not immediately returned. Excessive drinking can raise the risk of illness, injury, and disease, resulting in about 178,000 deaths every year. More research has come out on the deadly consequences of drinking this year, including the rise in associated liver disease and cancer deaths over the past two decades. In January, Biden-era Surgeon General Vivek Murthy called for a new label on drinks to warn of the cancer risk. Although, some researchers have identified surprising benefits of alcohol, including a reduced risk of cardiac arrest and protection against stroke. Right now, the guidelines say that drinking less alcohol is better for health than drinking more. American women should limit themselves to one drink or less in a day, while men should stick to two. A drink is defined as a five ounce glass of wine, a one-and-a-half-ounce glass of distilled spirits, or a 12-ounce bottle of beer. 'Individuals who do not drink alcohol should not start drinking for any reason,' the guidelines note. The last systematic review on alcohol and health conducted for the guidelines focused on all causes of related death in 2020. However, questions related to weight changes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, neurocognitive health, and lactation have not been examined since 2010, the National Academies Press said. Eva Greenthal, a senior policy scientist at the non-profit Center for Science in the Public Interest, told the agency that the more general language expected in the guidelines was "so vague as to be unhelpful". Under such a change, the message that even moderate drinking can increase risks, especially for breast cancer, would get lost, she continued.
