Washington bends into RFK Jr.’s “Maha” agenda on measles, baby formulas and fries
Babies are not usually equipment for closed White House meetings.
But when Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. convened a group of women this month to discuss nutrition and other topics, a healthy eating activist calling herself a “food baby” was unsettled to meet her eight-month girlfriend and President Trump’s spokesman on her rap.
Several women’s Cabinet Gazette had been viewing, but spokesman Caroline Leavitt lamented that European formula looks healthier than the US, where recent studies have found that many varieties are. Loaded with added sugar. Last week, Kennedy met with Formula Maker. Push announced Expand the “Safe, Reliable, Nutritious Formulations for Infants” option.
Activist Bani Hari was excited. “It was a great opportunity to see some solidification of Maha’s agenda across the various cabinets,” she said using Kennedy’s initials in “American Health” movement. She called the event “my dream come true.”
The “Mahamama” gathering, where Kennedy calls his legions of influencers and activists following him, was one of a series of choreography events held in recent weeks by Kennedy, who occupies a very rare place in Washington. Famous democratic family teacher, his embrace of Trump, his Trends to spin wild theory The core of truth and his promotion of critics made him one of the most polarizing figures in the Cabinet, despite his development of his own loyal supporters.
But even some Kennedy critics praise him for his focus on obesity and healthy diet. He has put up with the topic of discomfort with powerful industries and civil servants from his newly powerful perch as head of the Ministry of Health and Human Services.
Nowadays, businesses and governments have to compete with what is called the Kennedy Factor. So far, there have been very few official pushbacks.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention posted information about Vitamin A on its website after Kennedy promoted it as a measles treatment.
The fast food chain has announced that it is “RFK-D” fries by throwing away seed oil for beef tallow. Rendered Beef Fat Types Despite the cardiologist poses a risk to the heart, it resembles lard.
Formula maker for infants, scrutinized inside The shortage of 2022said they look forward to working with Mr. Kennedy. And after Mr. Kennedy Instructed by food executives To remove the food supply of artificial dyes, he followed up video messages on social media. “They understand that there is a new sheriff in town.”
Kennedy declined to request an interview.
It’s too early to know whether Kennedy has a real impact or whether these early steps are more pose than substance. The Trump administration has taken actions that seem to undermine his goals. dissolution Specialist committee to study methods to save infants Fatal bacteria It contributed to Deciding to temporarily shut down in 2022 Abbott Nutrition Infant Formula Plant.
Kennedy could encounter resistance from Congress. His dare to refined oils made from certain plants – Seed oils like canola, soybeans, corn – And the ultra-processed food containing them surprised Republicans, including Sen. Charles E. Grassley of Iowa.
Kennedy is opposed to the grants. Mr. Grassley publicly I instructed him “Leave agricultural practices regulation to the appropriate agencies,” including the Agriculture Bureau. Kennedy said he agreed.
“That’s a story. I want to see what the action is,” said Marion Nestle, professor emeritus of nutrition, food research and public health at New York University, about Kennedy’s ambitions to remake food supplies. “And if the only action is to extract color from the food supply, that’s not enough.”
Public health experts still have serious concerns about Kennedy, whose vaccine skepticism is turning into color His reaction to the Texas measles outbreak. Biomedical researchers say if he really wants to make America healthy, he would block Elon Musk’s government efficiency and prevent it from targeting the country’s scientific enterprises by reducing employment and reducing grants.
“I think he has to condemn that. He’s destroying science in America,” said Dr. Walter C. Willett, a pioneer in nutrition research at the Harvard School of Public Health.
But unless he’s talking about vaccines, Kennedy’s idea has gained careful support in some amazing places. Dr Willett told Kennedy that the National Institutes of Health should readjust its research portfolio to further study methods to prevent disease. Dr. Nestlé praised him for taking on the food industry.
“When President Trump announced on Twitter that he was appointing RFK Jr., he used the term industrial food complex,” she said. “I couldn’t believe it. It sounded like me, and RFK sounds like me.”
At the height of the coronavirus pandemic, Kennedy was identified as one of the top spreaders of misinformation by the centre to counter digital hatred. I listed him as one of them “Disformation is a dozen.” His Instagram account was suspended in 2021 Revived in 2023 When he began his presidential bid.
As a leader in the Department of Health, Kennedy now has a much larger platform that can shape American attitudes and beliefs.
Public health experts say some of his claims were totally wrong. For example, Kennedy told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that immunity to the measles vaccine has declined over time, and therefore “elderly people are essentially not vaccinated.”
That’s contradictory CDC website The vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella is usually “save people’s lives” from measles and rubella, but the immunity for mumps can decrease over time. Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University, agreed, saying “the measles vaccine continues to support the majority of your life.”
Last week, Kennedy proposed banning mobile phones at schools. This is an idea supported by bipartisans. But in addition to citing the mental health of a child, he made another unfounded claim: that cell phones “produce electromagnetic radiation” which can cause cancer.
So far, Kennedy appears to have largely ignored government experts. He does not have face-to-face or virtual briefings on measles from CDC infectious disease experts, according to two people who are familiar with the response to the Texas outbreak. Instead, he receives written reports from the institution.
Management officials said Kennedy meets with “career leadership” at the CDC’s parent agency HHS every day to discuss issues including measles.
Texas health officials say Kennedy’s message is confusing. Dr. Katherine Wells, director of public health for Lubbock, said she has a hard time convincing parents to vaccinate their children because she thinks “vitamin A is as protective as a vaccine.”
However, Kennedy’s allies were excited when the CDC added a reference to vitamin A to its website’s measles recommendations. Kennedy’s former communications director, Del Big Tree, praised the recent podcast move. “My God,” he said, “What small step do you think for humanity we just made?”
Kennedy has received quiet advice from at least one person from Professor Jeffrey D. Krausner at the University of Southern California and Dr. Jeffrey D. Krausner, who has spent many years at the CDC, including a job in disease prevention in South Africa. Kennedy’s neighbor in Los Angeles, Dr. Klausner is working to identify new members of the CDC’s vaccine advisory board, says Kennedy is full of conflicts of interest.
He said Kennedy only gave him one standard.
Despite the promise of “radical transparency,” Kennedy offers Americans a highly curated version of themselves. Like Trump, he speaks to the public mostly through social media and Fox News.
In a way, Kennedy has given a new twist to Trump’s “Make America Great Again” slogan. He wants to allow US customers to purchase flute loops with the same ingredients (dyes made from colored blueberries and carrots) using dyes made from colored blueberries and carrots, as in Europe, instead of the chemicals used in Canada.
Mr. Kennedy’s Crusade against Seed Oil caught the eye of executives with the Steak ‘n Shake. This says that Kennedy’s favorite fries are cooked with beef tallow, beef tallow.
“He says he follows science,” Dr. Willett said. “If you look at the scientific evidence, we won’t take you to the conclusion that beef tallow is better than seed oil.”
Indianapolis-based restaurant chain Steak’n Shake has announced this month’s Switch Social Media A photo of the ball cap in Trump’s signature Magazine Red declared that he would “make frying oil again.” Mr. Kennedy, otherwise I don’t seem to be a fan of friesWe moved to the Florida Steak ‘n Shake, shake with Mr. Hannity of Fox and picked up those baskets for the camera.
“I’m extremely grateful to have put RFK in my fries,” he said.
Healthy eating activist Hari called the stakes shake announcement “an interesting example of how progressive changes can be made to the food system and make it better.” She told Kennedy she was going to push the fast food chain to post all the ingredients online.
Kennedy’s inner circle appears to be divided into two camps. Something like Big Tree, who is drawn to him because of his vaccination attitude, and Hari and Carrie, authors of nutrition and chronic diseases and healthcare entrepreneurs. Messenger recently joined the White House as a special government employee to help Kennedy implement his agenda.
Kennedy also influenced the Maha movement in America. On Monday, the governor of West Virginia signed a law banning certain food dyes from school lunches.
Last week, Mr. Messey, along with other Kennedy allies, is in Arizona, in support of the “Make Arizona Healthy” bill, banning certain chemicals from school lunch programs and banning candies, soda, chips and other junk foods from being purchased along with federal nutrition dollars known as “food stamps.”
Helen Lees, who founded the weight loss program with her daughter, also testified, and was identified as “Mahamama” by the Maha Alliance, a group that supports Kennedy’s agenda. Monica gave her a pause.
“It’s new to me calling it,” she said. “I mean, absolutely, I represent health in everything I do,” she added. “I see myself as the leader of Maha too.”
After the Mahama Mars Meeting, the White House posted videos of Kennedy and some of his guests on social media, where they stumbled over how to pronounce food ingredients like riboflavin. Mr. Kennedy Posted photos In a message to the woman: “You got me where I am today, and I will not disappoint you.”
