To my surprise, I recently learned that I’ve been described as “too MAHA” (aka: Make America Healthy Again). Before MAHA came to be, my views on the healthcare system were often considered bold, whether it was my criticism of managed care (a field I worked in for 10 years), the lack of training in food and nutrition for conventional dieticians and physicians, or my passion for naturopathic medicine for the past 20+ years. I believe most are aware of the award-winning vitamin D work the Organic and Natural Health Association, in partnership with GrassrootsHealth, championed, which included a health claim submission to the FDA. It was heartwarming to be applauded for supporting a low-cost, low-profit nutrient that drives enormous healthcare changes and reduces healthcare costs.
So what has changed so dramatically that my commitment to increased utilization of dietary supplements would be deemed too much, or “too MAHA”? The current quest to be right versus wrong is not only standing in the way of potential reform of our healthcare system; it is also the beast preventing Congress from doing its job.
Let’s examine the statistics.
The United States has the world’s highest obesity rates. Approximately 40-42% of adults have a BMI equal to or greater than 30%. The average BMI in Europe is under 16%. BMI, as we know, fuels chronic disease.
Older Americans have higher rates of disease than Europeans. A European study comparing U.S. adults aged 50 and older with those in 10 European countries, showed a higher prevalence of heart disease, hypertension, high cholesterol, cerebrovascular disease, diabetes, chronic lung disease, asthma, arthritis, and cancer.
Cancer is the second leading cause of death in the U.S., behind heart disease. Europe has a lower rate, though it is increasing among younger people.
The preterm birth rate in the U.S. was 10.4% in 2021(1 out of 10 born) roughly 3-4% higher than leading European countries. 38.8% of infant deaths are caused by pre-term birth or resulting complications.
What exactly are we as a society arguing about when it comes to health care? According to the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), approximately 74% of Americans use dietary supplements. And, with the support of social media, consumer interest in health and nutrition has become extremely vocal, and part of the MAHA story. However, not everyone is interested in consumer confidence.
Consider this, written by a registered dietician on Reddit: “It’s the serioussss serioussss confidence that gets me. Like the dead in the eye look of telling me about their sea moss, or bone broth, or 0 sugar diet or butter in their coffee – like we are a band of brothers and like of course, of course, I would agree with them because we both KNOW nutrition. It makes me want to vomit:” And this response, “Seriously! Nutrition counseling has NEVER felt as exhausting, and straight up frustrating, as it feels nowadays with all this stuff out there. I pray for all of us counseling dietitians to stay sane through it all, or for all of us to find a job as far away from all this as possible if we want to.” Again, it’s about right vs. wrong.
I think we have seen that insulting humans is detrimental to advocacy, and likely democracy itself. As an industry, we must educate every day in our stores, online, in social media, in every message we write.
We do not have time to rest on our laurels and preach to legislators, or electors. We are obligated to rise above the noise, positive and negative, and reach the people who can institute change using data as our calling card. We must tune out the rhetoric that does not serve, including conversations related to vaccinations (among other messages). This is no different from before; we just aren’t accustomed to having the momentum and the votes we need on our side!
It would be slightly insane for our industry to argue against increasing nutrient levels for magnesium, omega-3 and certainly vitamin D, which means now is the time to step to the legislative plate again. At the end of July, the Organic Consumers Association and Organic and Natural Health Association had a meeting with a Republican Hill Staffer in the House of Representatives. The topic was vitamin D3, and the request was to provide the office with as much data as possible.
In the past, nutrition hasn’t been sexy, didn’t generate large political contributions, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) could not have been less interested in nutrient supplementation. Times have clearly changed, and on September 10, we’ll have 10 organizations representing millions of constituents joining forces on the Hill to educate the U.S. House and Senate. This work has always been about education. Hill staffers are consumers. They take care of their aging parents, have children with health care needs, and struggle to become parents just like the rest of Americans. Does this make me “too MAHA”? If so, I’m willing to go with it, because this is work that matters. You may think it’s right or wrong, but I believe this is work that changes lives and our future.
