A Fig Leaf for Dietary Guidelines Favoring Saturated Fat
January 21, 2026 —
Posts Tagged ‘evidence-based policy’
The Growing Roar of Condemnation for Ultra-Processed Foods
November 20, 2025 — “Big food is taking over,” says Barry Popkin, adding an exclamation point in the New York Times to a growing roar of condemnation for ultra-processed foods. The occasion for this is the publication of three new papers – plus an editorial – all at once in The Lancet this week. Popkin was an author on […]
Implications of “Miniscule” Effects in Obesity Prevention
May 24, 2025 — In BMJ Public Health, Annabel Davies and colleagues have published a new analysis of interventions to prevent obesity in children. They started with data from two Cochrane systematic reviews published in 2024 (here and here) and applied a Bayesian multi-level meta-regression analysis. What they found were obesity prevention effects that range from being small and […]
A Mashup of Whole Milk, Science, and Dietary Guidelines
April 6, 2025 — Get ready. A few months have passed since the Scientific Report of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Committee became final. But honestly, it seems like another lifetime when that was published. That was before the installation of the MAHA regime at HHS that is de-emphasizing vaccines, firing scientists, and promoting cod liver oil and “healthy” fries. […]
Brilliant, Ineffective Obesity Prevention Policies
November 29, 2024 — “Taxes on sweetened beverages have become a litmus test in public health: if you are concerned about rapidly increasing global rates of obesity, you should favor them.” This truth telling comes from a new commentary in JAMA Pediatrics. So we are happy to acknowledge the radiant sincerity of those who believe in taxing soda. But […]
Unconstrained Egos with Simple Answers for Diet and Health
November 18, 2024 — Bálint Magyar tells us in his recent Anatomy of Post-Communist Regimes that “populism offers problem-solving without moral constraints.” As we witness unconstrained egos with pseudo-populist views about obesity, diet, and health spout their dogma, the words of Magyar ring true. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has a simple answer for obesity: “Giving good food, three meals […]
What’s Known and Unknown About the UK Sugar Tax Effects
July 30, 2024 — The soft drinks industry levy came into effect in the UK in early 2018. The first study to investigate the effect of this “sugar tax” on individual-level consumption has just been published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health. The headline finding is that adults reduced their daily added sugar intake by about two […]
Does Ultra-Processed Food Cause People to Lose Their Minds?
July 16, 2024 — Looking for some naturally fast food? Minimally processed, but exquisitely prepared? Delicious, but not hyper-palatable? The U.S. Food and Drug Administration would like to help. According to Stat News, the agency is looking hard for ways to regulate ultra-processed food. It leaves us wondering if ultra-processed food can cause people to lose their minds. It […]
Eat Less Junk Food! Effectively Making People Behave Healthier
July 2, 2024 — This is one of the most robust and enduring myths of food policy. The mythology holds that the difference between healthy and unhealthy foods is clear, but many consumers are confused about it. So if we can educate, persuade, cajole, or nudge them toward buying more of those healthy foods and less of the unhealthy […]
ECO2024: Obesity Implicated in Nearly Half of Cancer Cases…But
May 13, 2024 — Compelling new research presented at ECO2024 implicates obesity in nearly half of all cancer cases. Researchers from Lund University in Sweden analyzed data from more than four million adults to find an additional 19 types of cancer for which obesity likely plays a significant role. They explained: “The findings of this study have important public […]
