New Food Pyramid Pushes for Healthier Country, D.C.

Nathaniel Thomas, NY - Writer

Photo from Department of Health and Human Services social media

For decades, the American people, especially children, have become less and less healthy relative to other developed nations, despite the country consistently becoming wealthier and spending more on healthcare. While previous administrations tried to cover this up by throwing money at the likes of Obamacare and other health programs, the Trump Administration has, led by Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Robert F. Kennedy Jr., dedicated itself to addressing the root causes of problems like childhood obesity and chronic illness. When Secretary Kennedy spoke at GW in December, he said that “A healthy person has a thousand dreams, while a sick person has only one.” In the first week of 2026, HHS released new diet and vaccine recommendations, which, if followed, will create a healthier nation for all, especially the youngest Americans.

In 1992, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released a plan designed to guide Americans to healthy eating choices, known as the food pyramid. The food pyramid, which became a staple of early childhood education, recommended a diet with the biggest focus on carb-heavy grains and dairy products, and protein as one of the smallest portions, contrary to actual food science. 

The results of this unscientific policy have been disastrous: according to USAFacts, the obesity rate in the United States has doubled since the early 1990s, and the diabetes rate steadily increased as well. 

According to the United Health Foundation, more than a third of children in the District of Columbia are overweight or obese, which is unacceptable for the capital and one of the richest cities in the richest countries  in the world. 

Thankfully, President Trump’s Department of Health and Human Services, led by longtime childhood health expert Robert F. Kennedy Jr., released a new, science-based food pyramid as part of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025-2030, in early January, which flips the old advice on its head. Where the old pyramid recommended putting protein to the side in favor of carbs, the new pyramid emphasizes protein as the foundation of Americans’ diets, as protein consumption is known to improve muscle mass, bone health, and metabolism, among numerous other benefits. 

Additionally, the new Dietary Guidelines are the first to explicitly recommend avoiding processed, packaged, “fake” food, which has always been obviously unhealthy, but has been left untouched by previous administrations thanks to food industry lobbying. 

As the dietary guidelines’ fact sheet details, America’s health outcomes are the worst in the developed world despite spending far more on health care than any other nation, thanks to chronic diseases, many of which can be traced back to the unhealthy food Americans have been eating at the recommendation of their own, lobbied government. HHS’s new guidance, if followed, will lead to healthier outcomes for all Americans and Washingtonians, which is something people of every political stripe should celebrate. 

HHS also announced changes to the recommended vaccination schedule for children. For decades, Americans have grown in their distrust of the government’s recommendations for vaccines, which are often required for public school attendance. A notable factor in the growth of vaccine skepticism is the inclusion of vaccines that are clearly unnecessary for children, such as the vaccine for the sexually transmitted hepatitis B, being administered to newborns. 

The new schedule aligns with all other developed nations, which, as previously stated, have far better childhood health outcomes than the United States. Parents who wish to give their children these vaccines can still do so, so this initiative only restores choice to American parents and families, which we ought to celebrate.