MAHA -
Making America Healthy Again - or Missing the Mark?
On February 13, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an executive order establishing the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) commission—a sweeping, government-wide initiative intended to tackle chronic disease in the United States. Chaired by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the commission has 180 days to deliver a national strategy, beginning with a 100-day assessment focused on improving children's health.
It sounds promising.
But based on what we know so far—especially from the commission’s closed-door launch on March 11—it’s more of a political stage show than a serious effort grounded in science.
🔍 The Crisis We Should Be Addressing
Chronic diseases are the number one cause of death and disability in the U.S.—and they cost us an estimated $4.5 trillion every year.
We lag behind peer nations in life expectancy. Obesity rates have skyrocketed:
40% of U.S. adults
20% of U.S. children
This isn’t just bad luck or bad genes—it’s driven by modifiable factors: poor diets, sedentary lifestyles, tobacco, and alcohol use. And the burden isn’t equally shared; disparities in health are deeply rooted in race, income, and geography.
A national commission could do a lot of good—if it followed the science.
🚪 Closed Doors, Open Questions
The MAHA commission held its inaugural meeting behind closed doors on March 11, with no public notice, only pre-selected guests, and no transparency—despite the Executive Order’s stated commitment to openness.
This is a red flag.
Transparency is not a side benefit of public health—it’s the foundation. When powerful agencies meet in secret, they lose credibility before they’ve even started.
⚠️ Priorities or Pet Projects?
Rather than focusing on high-impact, well-documented contributors to chronic disease—like sodium, added sugars, alcohol, and tobacco—the commission has taken aim at:
Food additives
SSRIs and antipsychotics
Weight-loss medications (despite proven benefits)
“Causes of autism” (based on outdated or debunked theories)
This isn’t science-driven policy—it’s ideology. And it distracts from interventions that actually work.
✅ Evidence-Based Solutions We Already Know Work
Here’s what the MAHA commission should be advocating:
1. Sodium and Sugar Reduction
The FDA has proposed sodium reduction targets for food manufacturers. Added sugar is a major driver of obesity. A tax on sugar-sweetened beverages would reduce consumption and fund public health efforts.
2. Clear Nutritional Labeling
Front-of-package labeling—used in over a dozen countries—helps consumers identify products high in sugar, sodium, and saturated fat. These labels don’t just inform; they prompt companies to reformulate products for better health.
3. Stick to the Dietary Guidelines
The 2025 Dietary Guidelines recommend more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and plant-based proteins—and less red and processed meat, saturated fats, and added sugars. The commission must not water this down with fringe dietary preferences like raw milk and anti-seed oil rhetoric.
4. Protect Federal Nutrition Programs
School meals, SNAP, and WIC are pillars of nutritional access. Undermining these programs under the guise of "health" would be a policy failure of epic proportions.
5. Fix the GRAS Loophole
The “generally recognized as safe” rule allows food additives into the market without FDA review. That’s a loophole, not a safety net.
6. Embrace Effective Obesity Medications
GLP-1 receptor agonists (like semaglutide) reduce diabetes, cardiovascular events, and all-cause mortality in high-quality trials. Yet Medicare is banned from covering them for obesity. That’s not just bad policy—it’s a missed opportunity to save lives.
7. Build for Movement
Physical activity starts with infrastructure. Sidewalks. Safe streets. Public parks. Bike lanes. Investing in these isn’t optional—it’s essential.
8. Finish the Fight Against Tobacco
Cigarettes still kill nearly half a million Americans annually. The FDA’s proposed rule to reduce nicotine to non-addictive levels could prevent 1.8 million deaths by 2060. Let’s finish what we started.
🧬 Final Thoughts: Less Hype, More Help
The MAHA commission still has a chance to get this right. But it needs to abandon political distractions and lean into the mountain of evidence we’ve already accumulated.
We don’t need to “make America healthy again.” We need to make it healthy—for the first time—for everyone.