RFK Jr. says new dietary guidelines will end ‘war on saturated fats in this country’ 

Americans should expect new federal dietary guidelines next month, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. says. 

Kennedy recently spoke at the Food Allergy Fund Leadership Forum, saying the update will mark a major break from years of government warnings about saturated fats. Federal agencies have taken several steps under his leadership, including new reviews of infant formula and efforts to cut petroleum-based food dyes, he noted. 

The coming guidance will call for more protein and more saturated fats in the average diet, according to Kennedy. 

“We’re ending the war on saturated fats in this country,” he said. 

The government will publish dietary guidelines stressing the importance of protein and saturated fats, which “will really revolutionize the food system in the country, the food culture in this country,” he said. 

Kennedy himself follows a strict eating plan that focuses on meat and dairy.

“It’s mainly meat and then fermented – anything fermented,” he said earlier this year. “So, a lot of yogurt, good yogurt without sugar in it. Then, coleslaw and kimchi and all kinds of fermented vegetables. And it’s really, I would say it’s dramatically changed my, you know, everything.”

Kennedy plans to recommend higher consumption of butter, cheese, milk and red meat, NewsNation previously reported. These ideas differ from longstanding advice from major medical groups, which warn high intake of saturated fats may raise the risk of heart disease.

Federal dietary guidelines are updated every five years. The current version says Americans should keep saturated fat under 10% of daily calorie intake. The American Heart Association recommends no more than 6%.

However, experts at the USDA argued earlier this year that people need to eat less saturated fat.

During Senate testimony, Eve Stoody from the USDA said, “We consume too much added sugars, we consume too much saturated fat.” 

Kennedy’s opponents say the new guidelines move the country in the wrong direction. They argue the switch will hurt longstanding public health efforts.

Meanwhile, his supporters argue refined carbohydrates and ultra-processed foods have caused the most harm, and say older guidelines ignored those concerns for too long.

The update comes as Americans face rising rates of obesity and chronic illness. Some conservative advocates say the federal government has spent decades promoting diets that lacked common sense and made people fat. They see the administration’s shift as long overdue.