Government says 'eat better' but makes it harder to feed your family

Years ago, in my pediatrics practice, I was speaking with the mother of one of my patients. As I was going over the latest nutrition guidelines for her child, she stopped me cold:  

"I know what’s in the guidance. I know what I’m supposed to do," she said. "But apart from McDonald’s, where am I going to feed my family for $10?" 

I’d like to ask Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. that question as he promotes his "Eat Real Food" campaign. I couldn’t agree more with the message, but most people already know we should eat real food. The real issue is that slogans offer no help if you’re a parent trying to feed kids on a tight budget while grocery prices skyrocket. You expect government leaders to understand your circumstances and offer policy solutions to match.  

But this administration is making it harder, not easier, for families to put real food on the table.

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As a doctor and a dad, I join the millions of parents who are demanding healthier foods. Our country’s food supply is overrun by ultraprocessed products filled with ingredients that belong in a chemistry lab, not our bodies. Food and beverage corporations market these products to children relentlessly and rake in billions of dollars. At the same time, our kids are paying the price: on any given day, most children don’t even eat a single vegetable. Something is very wrong here. So I welcome the movement to make our food supply healthier. 

Secretary Kennedy has embraced this movement, too, but not nearly as much as he’d like you to believe. For instance, he talks a lot about the administration’s new Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Some of the new guidelines are smart, including recommendations that Americans eat more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and fewer ultraprocessed products. But if it’s too expensive to follow that advice, does it really mean anything? What good are words on paper if the administration makes it harder for you to afford your grocery bill? 

Consider the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which helps more than 40 million Americans afford groceries. During last year’s government shutdown, the administration ordered states to stop distributing SNAP benefits, and then fought court rulings striking down that order. President Trump signed a bill that will kick millions of people off SNAP, including families with children, veterans, people experiencing homelessness, and young adults previously in foster care. The administration will soon propose even bigger cuts to the program.

How does any of that make real food more affordable?   

Or take the National School Lunch Program, which serves about 30 million children. No other federal nutrition program in the country reaches as many children. For many of them, a school lunch is their best shot at a healthy meal during the week. But the administration has canceled programs that help schools buy healthy produce directly from local farmers and ranchers. The administration has even proposed eliminating grants to help schools upgrade their cafeterias. Without a working kitchen, schools can’t prepare, serve, and store fresh foods. 

Does any of that help children grow up healthy or learn in the classroom?

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These policies make real food more expensive and less accessible. None of it makes sense. 

When families can’t afford real, healthy food, the consequences are severe. I’ll never forget this 4-year-old boy I took care of in Atlanta who wasn’t growing properly. Tests didn’t show any underlying diseases, but something was clearly wrong with his development; he looked much younger than he was. Our staff eventually figured out the cause: he wasn’t getting enough food to eat because his family couldn’t afford it. He was literally starving in the wealthiest country on earth. My "prescription" in this case was not medication, but connecting his family to a faith-based organization that ran a food bank. With more to eat, his health improved.  

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Imagine how many more doctors are having this same conversation with families now amid the Administration’s massive funding cuts.  

In medical terms, a child who isn’t growing properly is suffering from a "failure to thrive." Our country is experiencing a similar fate. Nearly 48 million Americans don't get enough food. Charities do incredible work across our country, but there’s no way they can make up for massive cuts to federal programs: for every meal provided by a food bank, SNAP provides nine. So why cut a program that is clearly working?

If the administration truly believes in "Eat Real Food," it should focus less on catchphrases and more on making real food more affordable. That means protecting programs that help families buy groceries, giving schools the ability to serve healthy meals to all children, and making sure parents are never priced out of the real food aisle at the grocery store. 

Politicians are experts at talking a big game, but true leaders make a real difference in people’s lives. The next time Secretary Kennedy tells you to "Eat Real Food," ask yourself why the administration is making it so hard for families to actually do it. At the end of the day, it’s an empty soundbite. And like an empty calorie, it doesn’t nourish anyone.   

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