Citing the newly released Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) 2025-2030 as “the most significant reset of federal nutrition policy in our nation’s history,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has summarized the message of the new DGAs in three words “Eat real food.” That simplicity is clear in the new guidelines being only 10 pages in length, with a three-page Daily Servings By Calorie Level – a significant departure from the 164-page guidelines of 2020-2025.
Where HHS instead puts its focus is in a 90-page Scientific Foundation document, along with a 418-page Appendices. In the Scientific Foundation, it is stated that the new guidelines are based on “the best available nutrition science centered around what humans should eat to prevent and reverse chronic disease and support optimal health” intended to “address and correct deficiencies identified in the Scientific Report of the 2025 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC Report), which framed its analysis through a health equity lens.”
The appendices, however, include as many questions as answers, with a full section on “priority research questions that, if addressed, would substantially strengthen the scientific foundation for future editions of the guidelines.” Additionally, choosing to use the term “highly processed” throughout the documents rather than the much debated “ultra-processed,” it acknowledges the pressing need for “harmonized definitions of processed foods” that includes a classification system that includes added sugars, refined oils, and refined starches, and randomized trials testing the effects of additives.
The DGA documents also include a graphically dynamic version of the guidelines which defines “Eat real food” as “choosing foods that are whole or minimally processed and recognizable as food…prepared with few ingredients and without added sugars, industrial oils, artificial flavors, or preservatives.” The phrase “recognizable as food” is likely to raise questions, however, as it is not referenced in either of the scientific foundation documents (and caused us to do a bit of head-scratching ourselves).
Stating that more than 70% of American adults are overweight or obese, 50% have diabetes or prediabetes, and 75% of adults have at least on chronic condition, the guidelines introduce a new food pyramid, intended to call out “the dangers of highly processed foods,” and prioritize diets that are built on whole, nutrient-dense foods while limiting or avoiding highly processed foods, specifically:
For the general population, the DGAs overarching recommendation is to “eat the right amount” of the following based on age, sex, height, weight, and level of physical activity, paying attention to portion sizes, and hydrating with water and unsweetened beverages. Recommended amounts for a 2,000-calorie diet include:
- Protein. (1.2–1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day). Prioritize at every meal, choosing a variety of high-quality, nutrient-dense protein foods sourced from animals and plants; bake, broil, roast, stir-fry, or grill instead of frying; and flavor with salt, spices and herbs.
- Dairy. (3 servings per day) Include full-fat foods with no added sugars.
- Vegetables & Fruits. (3 servings vegetables, 2 servings fruit per day) Eat a variety in their original form or as frozen, dried, or canned with no or very limited added sugars. Consume limited amount of 100% fruit or vegetable juice.
- Healthy Fats. (Keep saturated fats to less than 10% of total daily calories) Include meats, poultry, eggs, omega-3–rich seafood, nuts, seeds, full-fat dairy, olives, and avocados; prioritize oils with essential fatty acids, such as olive oil, butter, or beef tallow.
- Whole Grains. (2–4 servings per day) Prioritize fiber-rich whole grains over processed, refined carbohydrates, (e.g., white bread, RTE/packaged breakfasts, flour tortillas, crackers).
- Meals. Prioritize nutrient-dense foods and home-prepared meals. When dining out, choose nutrient-dense options.
The DGAs also recommend that the following be limited or avoided:
- Highly processed foods, added sugars, & refined carbohydrates: Limit foods with artificial flavors and preservatives, petroleum-based dyes, and low-calorie non-nutritive sweeteners; limit meals to less than 10 grams added sugars; avoid sugar-sweetened beverages. Limit snack foods to those for which any added sugar follows FDA “Healthy” claim limits.
- Sodium and electrolytes: Although essential for hydration limit sodium consumption to (by age): 14 and older less than 2,300 mg per day; ages 9-13, less than 1,800 mg; ages 4-8, less than 1,500 mg ages; ages 1-3, less than 1,200 mg.
- Alcoholic beverages: Limit for better overall health.
Following these, the guidelines then provide recommendations for special populations & considerations, such as stipulations for specific age groups, infants through seniors, pregnant and lactating women, vegetarians/vegans, and those with chronic diseases.
Thus far, reaction has been mixed with health experts stating that too much emphasis is put on red meats, full-fat dairy, and saturated fats such as butter and tallow, while approving the focus on eating more fruits and vegetables and limiting highly processed foods, added sugars, and sodium. Additionally, while the 10-page guidelines are fairly easy to digest, there is much to parse out in the 500+ pages of the Scientific Foundation and Appendices, in all likelihood leading to continued, intense discussion and controversy over the guidelines and their scientific basis.
While there remains a long way to go in defining exactly what “real food” is, we can’t argue with what is stated (in the last line in the real food document) as the core goal of the new guidelines, as “Eat real foods most of the time” surely is a fairly attainable and healthy goal for Americans to strive for.
