(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) The Trump administration released on Thursday a 72-page report exposing the presumed key drivers behind the childhood chronic disease crisis.
Led by the Department of Health and Human Services, the report identified poor diet, accumulation of environmental toxins, lack of physical activity, chronic stress and overmedicalization as the root causes driving the epidemic.
Its release follows Trump’s executive order creating the “Presidential Commission to Make America Healthy Again,” which was mandated to deliver a plan within 100 days.
“There is something wrong and we will not stop until we defeat the chronic disease epidemic,” Trump said at a Thursday event unveiling the commission’s findings.
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy echoed Trump’s pledge in a press statement, vowing to use science to develop “bold policies that put the health, development, and future of every child first.”
The report specifically faulted the American diet’s reliance on ultra-processed foods. This, the commission contended, has led to nutrient depletion, excess calories and exposure to harmful additives. It found that 70 percent of children’s calories come from such foods.
It also called out synthetic chemicals, as they are linked to developmental issues and chronic disease. The report calls for regulatory review to identify and eliminate potentially harmful substances.
The overmedicalization of children “often driven by conflicts of interest in medical research,” also posed a problem, the commission said, adding: “This has led to unnecessary treatments and long-term health risks.”
The commission, composed of cabinet and administration officials, now has 82 days to finish its “Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy,” aimed at tackling the issues identified in the report.
The report’s release comes as one in five children aged six and older now struggles with obesity, a 270 percent increase since the 1970s.
Prediabetes prevalence among teens has doubled over the past two decades, while childhood cancer rates have skyrocketed by nearly 40 percent since 1975.
See the full report below.
