On January 7, 2026, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2025-2030 (DGA) were released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The DGAs provide advice on nutrient needs, promote health, and help prevent chronic disease, which will influence current and forthcoming HHS and USDA food and nutrition policy. HHS and USDA summarized the main message for Americans is to “eat real food,” which is reflected by the new DGA infographic website, realfood.gov.
This DGA departs from prior versions as the basis for recommendations is not founded exclusively upon the recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC). The new recommendations reflect Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) policies, which are skeptical of the harm associated with saturated fat intake and critical of highly processed foods/ultra-processed foods. For instance, they recommend consuming red meat and fatty cheese, while limiting the consumption of highly processed foods that contain chemical additives, artificial flavors, synthetic food dyes, and low-calorie non-nutritive sweeteners. The DGA replaces “MyPlate” with an inverted food pyramid, emphasizing consumption of vegetables, fruit, protein, dairy, and healthy fats.
- Departure from the DGAC Report and Foundation of the DGA
The DGAs have helped shape public health nutrition since 1980 and are updated every five years. Typically, the recommendations come from an expert panel known as the DGAC. The DGAC released its latest report in December 2024 to inform the 2025–2030 Guidelines.
This year, however, the process took a sharp turn. The Trump Administration sharply criticized the DGAC’s report. Secretary Kennedy claimed the committee was too influenced by the food industry and announced an alternative review process “to replace corporate-driven assumptions with common-sense goals and gold-standard scientific integrity.”
While the DGAC was not disbanded, most of its findings were set aside. Instead, the new 2025–2030 Guidelines draw on reviews conducted by experts chosen through a federal contracting process – which has already drawn questions about transparency and potential conflicts of interest.
The administration’s new report rejects the DGAC’s use of a “health equity lens” and instead promotes a more uniform, data-driven approach to nutrition, adjusting only for basic factors like age, sex, and activity level. It also emphasizes Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs) as the foundation for future recommendations, aiming to set new research priorities and close what it calls critical evidence gaps linking modern diets to chronic disease.
- Overview of The DGA and The New Pyramid as Informed by The Report
Despite promises that the DGA would be simplified, it is longer than prior versions. The DGA itself is 10 pages of recommendations, but is accompanied by a separate 508-page supporting report, “The Scientific Foundation for the Dietary Guidelines for Americans” (“Report”), and its Appendix. Below are the main recommendations in the DGA as supported by the recommendations in the Report and Appendix.
- The New Food Pyramid – Positioned as a “simple guide,” it departs from the MyPlate model and the original Food Pyramid.
- “Eat the Right Amount,” emphasizing that overall caloric intake will depend on an individual’s age, sex, height, weight and level of physical activity.
- Protein remains a cornerstone of the DGA and generally reaffirms that protein intake.
- Recommends consuming dairy; especially “full-fat” dairy.
- Eat vegetables and fruits; and focus on whole grains.
- Recommends incorporating “healthy fats” into the diet.
- Limit highly processed foods, added sugars, and refined carbohydrates.
- Maintains “the general population, ages 14 and above, should consume less than 2,300 mg per day of sodium.”
- Other topics, including discussion around chemical additives and food packaging contaminants, microbiome/gut health, alcohol recommendations, and considerations for some special populations.
- FDA/USDA Policy Impacts
The DGA will influence current and emerging health and nutrition policy. During a same-day press conference, Secretary Kennedy and Secretary Rollins stated that the “next step” is to begin “the process of implementing and redrafting the rules to reflect what the new DGAs provide.”
The following are areas that the DGA has traditionally impacted and new areas of focus under the Trump Administration, MAHA, and the new DGA.
- School Lunches and Additional Nutrition Assistance Programs
- Food Additives and Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) Substances
- Although not noted in the DGA recommendations, Appendix 1 includes a list of food and food packaging chemicals where researchers call for more research due to potential safety concerns.
- Nutrition Labeling (Nutrition Facts Panel, Front-of-Package labeling), and Nutrient Content Claims like “Healthy”)
- Ultraprocessed Foods Definition and Policy
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The DGA release is the next major step in the MAHA movement to target chronic disease by reshaping nutrition policy. We anticipate more to come in 2026. For questions on specific DGA topics, supporting materials, or future impacts, please contact [email protected].
