The first report by a presidential panel commissioned to “Make America Healthy Again (MAHA)” raises concerns about the rising rate of childhood disease, suggests possible causes, and recommends a 10-step strategy “to close critical research gaps” to guide efforts to solve the problem.
The 71-page “Make Our Children Healthy Again Assessment,” released on May 22, states it is meant to be “a call to action … examining the root causes of deteriorating child health” and to establish a “clear, evidence-based foundation for the policy interventions, institutional reforms, and societal shifts needed to reverse course.”
The report identifies four baseline drivers making this the “sickest generation” in American history: ultra-processed foods, exposure to environmental chemicals, overuse of technology resulting in sedentary lifestyles, and ineffective overmedicating.
Further exacerbating these drivers is well-funded corporate capture, specifically the “perverse incentives [of] … food, pharmaceutical, and chemical companies, as well as special interest Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and professional associations,” that fund most research on childhood disease. Inherently biased, these entities have achieved great influence through billion-dollar lobbying efforts, the commission found.
Childhood Vaccine Schedule
The commission addressed the subject of vaccines.
“Vaccines benefit children by protecting them from infectious diseases,” states the report. “But, as with any medicine, vaccines can have side effects that must be balanced against their benefits.”
The U.S. vaccine schedule calls for 29 injections by the time a child is a year old (including in utero shots), yet “no trials have compared the advisability and safety of the U.S. vaccine schedule as compared to other nations,” the report states. Vaccines are often mandated for entry into school, the report states, when “over half of European countries—including the UK—do not require childhood vaccinations.
The commission “rightly calls for independent research, a full reevaluation of the vaccine schedule, and an end to regulatory capture,” said Nicholas Hulscher, epidemiologist and foundation administrator at the McCullough Foundation, in a May 23 blog post at Courageous Discourse. “This is a critical and long-overdue step toward restoring scientific integrity and reversing the chronic disease epidemic.”
The report does not mention the hotly contentious mRNA COVID-19 injections.
‘Valid Concern’
The commission would be wise to avoid the topic of vaccines altogether, says Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of the American Action Forum.
“I think taking a stand on mRNA and COVID-19 vaccinations is a no-win situation for this commission,” said Holtz-Eakin. “The vaccine is so controversial. Why raise that [topic]? It would overshadow everything else in the report. I wouldn’t relitigate this at this point. I would think it would be a loser to bring back up.”
Highlighting the rise in chronic diseases in the United States over the past 40 years addresses a “valid concern that previous administrations did not focus on,” said Holtz-Eakin.
Association vs. Causation
Addressing the issue of chronic disease, one of the first MAHA initiatives addressed toxic food dyes allowed into the food supply through a standard known as Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS). Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. said the standard “looks at any new chemical as innocent until proven guilty.”
The FDA plans to phase out all petroleum-based dyes from food and drugs by 2026.
Pointing to ultra-processed food as the primary reason for childhood obesity seems overstated, says Holtz-Eakin.
“We don’t have evidence that is the [primary] cause,” said Holtz-Eakin. “There’s a long way to go to get to the firmness of their conclusions and the statistical basis that we have so far.”
Ten-Step Strategy
The report concludes with a list of “next steps” to close gaps in health care research and development to create a gold standard of practice and develop a comprehensive strategy.
The recommendations include “addressing the replication crisis” to bolster the validity of scientific studies; “real-world safety monitoring of pediatric drugs”; a “real-world data platform,” specifically mentioning autism; “AI-powered surveillance” to improve drug monitoring; “GRAS Oversight Reform” and supporting independent research on food ingredients; and “nutrition trials” to look specifically at obesity and insulin resistance.
Other recommendations include randomized trials on “large-scale lifestyle interventions,” studies of the long-term impact of pediatric drugs, alternatives to animal testing that would give better predictive human results, and “precision toxicology,” considering combinations of factors that affect health.
Limits of Government Action
Health-related problems associated with obesity and sedentary lifestyles, as recognized in the report, are wrapped up in cultural convenience, says Devon Herrick, a health care economist who posts on The Goodman Institute Health Blog.
“I do not believe there is much the government can do to change that,” said Herrick. “It’s questionable how far it should try.”
There is a long way to go between the report and actionable policy, says Holtz-Eakin.
“I think next year is the year to answer the question of [quality] policy,” said Holtz-Eakin. “We have to get past the reconciliation bill. Everything right now is about reducing spending. If you make health policy just to reduce spending, you usually make a negative impact. You save a lot of money, but it’s not good health policy.”
This may not be a time when the government will be called to do less, says Katy Talento, an epidemiologist, naturopath, and health policy advisor.
“It will no doubt be essential for the FDA to use its powers to actually ban poisons like petroleum-based dyes from our food supply, the way the agency already has for such toxins in the cosmetic supply,” said Talento. “Otherwise, these companies will just wait out this administration.”
A strategy report from the MAHA Commission is due in August.
Ashley Bateman ([email protected]) writes from Virginia.
