MAHA Commission Report to Spotlight Toxins in Food

• Rates of childhood illness have skyrocketed in just one generation — The report cites dramatic rises in obesity, diabetes, cancer, autism, depression and food allergies among children.³ More than 1 in 5 U.S. children over age 6 are now obese — a 270% increase since the 1970s.

Autism affects 1 in 31 children by age 8, and childhood cancer has risen nearly 40% since 1975. These trends reflect more than genetics; they reflect a collapsing health environment.

• Children are absorbing dangerous levels of herbicides from everyday foods — A 2022 U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study showed that 87% of children tested had glyphosate, an herbicide used in Roundup, in their urine.⁴ Exposure comes not only from handling the chemical directly but from consuming common foods like wheat and oats.

Farmers frequently spray glyphosate on crops shortly before harvest to speed up drying. The commission highlights this as a key factor in immune disruption, hormonal shifts and neurological disorders seen in children.

• New government recommendations include phasing out artificial dyes and ending fluoride use — Kennedy has directed the Department of Health and Human Services to investigate fluoride’s role in long-term health complications and begin phasing artificial dyes out of the U.S. food supply. These additives, still permitted in many U.S. foods, have been restricted or banned in other countries due to their impact on behavior and attention.

• The report emphasizes childhood health, but the concerns extend to all age groups — While children are the focal point of the MAHA Commission’s efforts, environmental toxins and industrial food practices affect everyone.

Chronic exposure to endocrine disruptors, preservatives and herbicide residues has been linked to a surge in adult-onset conditions as well, including Type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, autoimmune disease and infertility. Kennedy has repeatedly stated that America’s chronic illness burden isn’t accidental — it’s engineered through systemic neglect and regulatory failure.

• Federal agencies are being ordered to act on research, oversight and intervention — The National Institutes of Health, FDA and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will now be mobilized to close research gaps, overhaul outdated food safety policies and introduce real-time surveillance of environmental and dietary threats.

The goal is not to delay action, but to develop and enforce immediate, science-backed solutions that reverse the chronic disease epidemic in U.S. children.

• The commission found strong public support for medical accountability and transparency — According to a poll conducted by the Center for Excellence in Polling, 88% of likely voters, spanning Democrats and Republicans, agree that drug companies should be held financially liable for harm caused by medications or vaccines.⁶

An overwhelming 91% support requiring hospitals to post prices for common procedures. The support wasn’t partisan: 92% of Republicans and 91% of Democrats agreed. This cross-party consensus underscores how food safety, medical transparency and consumer protection are no longer fringe concerns — they’re mainstream demands.

• Policy proposals include limits on pharma immunity and food label transparency — As part of the MAHA agenda, lawmakers are now debating legislation that would roll back legal protections shielding vaccine and drug manufacturers from liability.

Kennedy argues that accountability is the only path to restoring public trust in health systems. Meanwhile, food transparency measures, such as clearer ingredient labeling and country-of-origin disclosures, are gaining traction in Congress.

• The MAHA Commission signals a cultural shift toward health accountability — Tarren Bragdon, president of the Foundation for Government Accountability, told USA Today that MAHA is a sign of cultural awakening. “Americans are sick of junk food — and junk policy,” he said.

“They want action …”⁷ Whether or not every policy proposal becomes law, the message is clear: the U.S. public wants cleaner food, fewer medications and more transparency from the institutions claiming to protect them.

• Toxicity isn’t just chemical — it’s also lifestyle — This isn’t only about pesticides or food dyes. It’s also about chronic stress, poor sleep, artificial lighting, nutrient-deficient food and a lack of meaningful movement. Every small piece matters. You can’t expect your child to thrive if their meals come from boxes, their attention is hijacked by screens and their day starts and ends under LED bulbs instead of morning sun.

• Neurological and emotional damage is widespread — Your child’s nervous system is constantly wiring itself based on experience. If those experiences include fluorescent lighting, high-stress classrooms and synthetic additives, the effects won’t always show up in blood work — but they will show up in mood and behavior.

I often hear parents say, “Something just feels off.” They’re right. You’re not imagining it. What you’re seeing is dysregulation — mood swings, irritability, restlessness — and it often starts from a nervous system under siege.

• We need to start talking about the real social drivers of illness — Removing artificial dyes from food is a start, but if your child is also dealing with a largely ultraprocessed food diet — high in the mitochondrial poison linoleic acid (LA) — food insecurity, unstable housing or nonstop pressure to perform, it’s not enough.

Children often completely unravel under conditions that don’t show up on a lab test but deeply affect how their bodies respond to stress. These children aren’t “bad” or “broken.” They’re adapting to a world that doesn’t give their biology what it needs to stay balanced.

• Removing LA and additives is foundational, not optional — One of the first things I recommend parents to do is clean up the ingredients in their child’s food. Get rid of vegetable oils — a top source of LA — artificial dyes, high-fructose corn syrup, preservatives and emulsifiers.

I’ve seen transformations that conventional medicine would call impossible — better sleep, calmer moods, clearer thinking — just from this one step. These additives don’t belong in any child’s body.

• The only real way forward is to support the body, not suppress it — You don’t need another label or another medication. What you need is a reset: real food, real light, restorative sleep, connection to nature and removal of inflammatory exposures. As I write about in my book, “Your Guide to Cellular Health,” the key lies in restoring cellular energy. Repairing your gut. Calming your nervous system. That’s how you begin to see real, lasting change.

• You have more control than you think — The system will tell you it’s genetic. That it’s random. That it’s just parenting. But you’re equipped to take action that matters. Every decision you make about food, screens, sleep and sunlight — it all adds up. You don’t need permission to start. You just need to make one change, then another. Start meeting these biological needs, and you’ll start seeing your child thrive again.

• The tools are already here; it’s just a matter of using them — You don’t need a diagnosis to clean up your child’s environment and lifestyle. Start with food, then move to water, then look at the light they’re exposed to and the rhythm of their day. Each upgrade you make removes a burden from their system and gives their body a better chance to heal.

1. Remove the worst food toxins from your kitchen — The first step is to go through your pantry and pull out anything with vegetable oils, artificial food dyes, emulsifiers, synthetic preservatives and flavor enhancers. That means things like brightly colored candies, boxed snack cakes, popular cereals and even many “natural” sauces, dressings and yogurts.

These ingredients disrupt gut bacteria, alter behavior and drain energy. If your child eats them daily, the damage builds up quickly. Focus instead on whole foods and meals you make at home.

2. Stop buying foods sprayed with glyphosate — Glyphosate doesn’t wash off. If it’s in the wheat, oats and corn your child eats, it’s getting into their bloodstream. Choose organic whenever possible. Organic products aren’t sprayed with synthetic herbicides right before harvest, which reduces your child’s exposure. If organic isn’t an option, focus on replacing high-residue foods like oat cereals, crackers and corn-based snacks first.

3. Reset their nervous system with daily outdoor movement — Even 20 minutes outside in the morning sunlight helps regulate your child’s circadian rhythm and calm their nervous system.

Movement, especially walking, climbing and active play, and spending time in nature helps discharge built-up stress and balances neurotransmitters. If your child is stuck inside most of the day or on screens, this one change could unlock better sleep, focus and mood almost immediately.

4. Create a rhythm your child’s biology can rely on — Children thrive on structure, especially when that structure supports healing. Set predictable mealtimes and bedtime. Shut off screens at least 90 minutes before bed. Keep snacks simple and nourishing.

This kind of rhythm reduces the background stress that keeps children in “fight or flight” mode. When their biology stops bracing for chaos, their digestion, sleep and mood all begin to stabilize. It’s one of the fastest ways to bring calm back into your household.

5. Build a home environment that supports detox and repair — Your child’s biology doesn’t just need fewer toxins; it needs more tools to clear what’s already there. Eliminate artificial air fresheners, candles and dryer sheets. Use water filters that reduce glyphosate, fluoride and heavy metals in your drinking water.

Open the windows for a few minutes every day to refresh indoor air. Make sure they’re eating enough healthy carbs and other nutrient-rich foods. These simple shifts give their detox pathways the support they need to finally catch up.