Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
US Department of Health and Human Services and the US Department of Agriculture
Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA)
cdn.realfood.gov/DGA.pdf
Synthesizes the latest nutritional research and offers revamped eating advice every five years.
Good, but
? too much emphasis on animal protein
Not much emphasis on legumes and other plant-based proteins
Concerns about animal welfare
From DGA, 2025 – 2030
The message is simple: eat real food.
To Make America Healthy Again, we must return to the basics.
American households must prioritize diets built on whole,
nutrient-dense foods:
protein, dairy, vegetables, fruits, healthy fats, and whole grains.
Paired with a dramatic reduction in highly processed foods:
laden with refined carbohydrates, added sugars, excess sodium, unhealthy fats, and chemical additives,
this approach can change the health trajectory for so many Americans.
The United States is amid a health emergency. Nearly 90% of health care spending goes to treating people who have chronic diseases.
The consequences have been devastating.
More than 70% of American adults are overweight or obese.
Nearly one in three American adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 has prediabetes.
Diet-driven chronic disease now disqualifies large numbers of young Americans from military service,
undermining national readiness and cutting off a historic pathway to opportunity and upward mobility.
For decades, federal incentives have promoted low-quality, highly processed foods and pharmaceutical intervention instead of prevention.
This crisis is the result of poor policy choices; inadequate nutrition research; and a lack of coordination across federal, state, local, and private partners.
We are realigning our food system to support American farmers, ranchers, and companies who grow and produce real food
We are putting real food back at the center of the American diet.
Real food that nourishes the body.
Real food that restores health.
Real food that fuels energy and encourages movement and exercise.
Real food that builds strength.
We are restoring common sense, scientific integrity, and accountability to federal food and health policy
We are reclaiming the food pyramid and returning it to its true purpose of educating and nourishing all Americans.
Together, we can shift our food system away from chronic disease and toward nutrient density, nourishment, resilience, and long-term health.
America’s future depends on what we grow, what we serve, and what we choose to eat.
Most Americans ignore the country’s dietary guidelines, but millions will be directly affected.
Guidelines shape federally funded nutrition programs
E.g. Federal money
pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/11/14/what-the-data-says-about-food-stamps-in-the-us
theguardian.com/environment/2026/feb/03/us-dietary-guidelines?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other
42 million served by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap or food stamps)
6.7 million moms and children in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC)
2.6 million seniors; and in the Meals on Wheels program.
Unspecified number of mostly low-income, food-insecure or health-challenged Americans through Food Is Medicine programs.
Almost 30 million children, Fed funded school lunches
(several years to filter through systems)
Visual representation for children
myplate-prod.azureedge.us/sites/default/files/2024-05/A-Brief-History-of-the-USDA-Food-Guides.pdf
US Department of Health and Human Services and the US Department of Agriculture
Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA)
cdn.realfood.gov/DGA.pdf
Synthesizes the latest nutritional research and offers revamped eating advice every five years.
Good, but
? too much emphasis on animal protein
Not much emphasis on legumes and other plant-based proteins
Concerns about animal welfare
From DGA, 2025 – 2030
The message is simple: eat real food.
To Make America Healthy Again, we must return to the basics.
American households must prioritize diets built on whole,
nutrient-dense foods:
protein, dairy, vegetables, fruits, healthy fats, and whole grains.
Paired with a dramatic reduction in highly processed foods:
laden with refined carbohydrates, added sugars, excess sodium, unhealthy fats, and chemical additives,
this approach can change the health trajectory for so many Americans.
The United States is amid a health emergency. Nearly 90% of health care spending goes to treating people who have chronic diseases.
The consequences have been devastating.
More than 70% of American adults are overweight or obese.
Nearly one in three American adolescents between the ages of 12 and 17 has prediabetes.
Diet-driven chronic disease now disqualifies large numbers of young Americans from military service,
undermining national readiness and cutting off a historic pathway to opportunity and upward mobility.
For decades, federal incentives have promoted low-quality, highly processed foods and pharmaceutical intervention instead of prevention.
This crisis is the result of poor policy choices; inadequate nutrition research; and a lack of coordination across federal, state, local, and private partners.
We are realigning our food system to support American farmers, ranchers, and companies who grow and produce real food
We are putting real food back at the center of the American diet.
Real food that nourishes the body.
Real food that restores health.
Real food that fuels energy and encourages movement and exercise.
Real food that builds strength.
We are restoring common sense, scientific integrity, and accountability to federal food and health policy
We are reclaiming the food pyramid and returning it to its true purpose of educating and nourishing all Americans.
Together, we can shift our food system away from chronic disease and toward nutrient density, nourishment, resilience, and long-term health.
America’s future depends on what we grow, what we serve, and what we choose to eat.
Most Americans ignore the country’s dietary guidelines, but millions will be directly affected.
Guidelines shape federally funded nutrition programs
E.g. Federal money
pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/11/14/what-the-data-says-about-food-stamps-in-the-us
theguardian.com/environment/2026/feb/03/us-dietary-guidelines?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other
42 million served by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap or food stamps)
6.7 million moms and children in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC)
2.6 million seniors; and in the Meals on Wheels program.
Unspecified number of mostly low-income, food-insecure or health-challenged Americans through Food Is Medicine programs.
Almost 30 million children, Fed funded school lunches
(several years to filter through systems)
Visual representation for children
myplate-prod.azureedge.us/sites/default/files/2024-05/A-Brief-History-of-the-USDA-Food-Guides.pdf
