On May 22, the White House released Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy’s Making Our Children Healthy Again (MAHA) report, which focuses on the leading drivers of childhood chronic disease.

The report states that, according to the CDC, 40% of the approximately 73 million children in the United States ages 0 to 17 have at least one chronic health condition. These include asthma, allergies, obesity, autoimmune diseases or behavioral disorders.

The document has drawn the attention of the U.S. agriculture and food industries by highlighting poor diet and environmental chemicals as two of the main factors behind children’s declining health. The other two drivers listed are a lack of physical activity and chronic stress, and over-medicalization.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said the government "must do more to improve the health outcomes of our kids and families. President Trump knows agriculture is at the heart of the solution. America’s farmers and ranchers dedicate their lives to the noble cause of feeding their country and the world, and in doing so have created the safest and most abundant and affordable food supply in the world. We are working to ensure our kids and families consume the healthiest food we produce."

In a press release, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said it has 82 days to produce the Make Our Children Healthy Again Strategy based on the report’s findings.

The report clearly states that children are being exposed to an increasing number of synthetic chemicals and ultra-processed foods, which have led to "nutrient depletion, increased caloric intake, and exposure to harmful additives, developmental issues, and chronic disease." 

It highlights the role of American farmers and notes that health and agriculture innovations have helped increase U.S. life expectancy by more than 30 years since 1900. Still, the report argues that many leading scientific and medical institutions have grown complacent and too heavily influenced by corporate interests.

The report says its purpose is "radical transparency and to build a world where American farmers are put at the center of how the U.S. thinks about health, the American healthcare system thrives when disease is prevented and reversed, not just managed, building the Great American Comeback, and a revolution in living standards and prosperity in the next ten years." 

It emphasizes that 70% of the average American child’s calories now come from ultra-processed foods, describing this overreliance as a crisis. The report notes that children are especially vulnerable to chemical exposure during key stages of development and cites more than 40,000 chemicals registered for use in the United States.

The goal, the report says, is to "put whole foods produced by American farmers and ranchers at the center of healthcare," but the products should be as close as possible to their original form. Ultra-processed grains, sugars, and fats are at the center of the issue. The report cites high fructose syrup, added sugars, cakes, cookies, refined breads, candy, snacks, and refined oils as disease drivers. 

Industry concerns

Some farmers and Republican leaders have expressed concern about the report’s references to glyphosate, a widely used herbicide. On Wednesday, Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said he had heard from farmers worried about the potential implications of the MAHA report.

Kennedy responded by saying the report would not harm those groups, and he emphasized that the document repeatedly highlights the importance of the U.S. agricultural industry and its farmers.

The report also discusses corporate influence in pesticide and chemical research. It notes that 50% of non-industry-funded studies have found common pesticides to be harmful, while 100% of chemical industry-funded studies before 2005 deemed bisphenol A (BPA) safe. More than 90% of non-industry studies identified harm at low doses.

The document references glyphosate and cites studies raising concerns about potential links between pesticides, herbicides and insecticides and adverse health outcomes.

It notes that several studies have connected glyphosate with reproductive and developmental disorders, cancer, liver inflammation and metabolic issues. However, it does clarify that "federal government reviews of epidemiologic data for the most common herbicide did not establish a direct link between use according to label directions and adverse health outcomes," and the U.S. government will publish an updated health assessment on common herbicides in 2026.