New Federal Dietary Guidelines Prioritize Protein, Take Aim at Processed Foods and Sugar

The federal government has released new dietary guidelines that veer from previous recommendations on how Americans have been advised to eat.

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030, released January 7 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), are being described by the administration as the most significant reset of federal nutrition policy in decades.

While many of the guidelines align closely with mainstream nutritional science, such as the recommendation to cut down on highly processed foods and added sugar, others are controversial, such as the new emphasis on protein-rich foods such as red meat and whole milk, which can be high in saturated fat and contribute to heart disease when eaten in excess.

Federal Officials Say Changes Address a National Health Emergency

Updated every five years, the Dietary Guidelines shape what’s served in schools, hospitals, and federal nutrition programs such as WIC and SNAP. While many people never read the guidelines directly, the food pyramid — the visual of what foods to limit and what to eat more of — are part of American food culture.

Federal officials say the reset is intended to address a national health emergency driven largely by diet-related chronic disease. According to an HHS brief released with the new guidelines, more than 70 percent of U.S. adults are overweight or have obesity, and nearly 90 percent of healthcare spending goes toward treating chronic conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, and obesity.

A Protein-First Approach

Previous dietary guidelines often focused on limiting individual nutrients such as saturated fat or cholesterol. In contrast, the 2025–2030 version takes a broader approach, encouraging Americans to:

Prioritize protein at every meal.
Consume full-fat dairy products with no added sugars.
Eat vegetables and fruits throughout the day, focusing on whole forms.
Include fats from foods such as meat, seafood, eggs, nuts, seeds, olives, and avocados.
Choose whole grains while sharply reducing refined carbohydrates.
Avoid sugar-sweetened beverages and limit added sugars.
Reduce intake of highly processed foods containing excess sodium, sugar, or additives.

Previous guidelines have overlapped partially with these recommendations, including limiting foods with added sugar and incorporating fruits and vegetables.

However, the redesigned food pyramid emphasizes meat, full-fat dairy, and cheese — while deprioritizing grains, including whole grains, and low-fat dairy.

Cutting Back on Processed Foods Draws Broad Support

The updated dietary guidelines are the first to directly address processed foods.

The guidance calls for a “dramatic reduction” in foods high in refined carbohydrates, added sugars, excess sodium, and chemical additives. While the guidelines avoid the term “ultra-processed,” they advise limiting foods such as chips, cookies, candy, and packaged snacks with artificial flavors, preservatives, or sweeteners that can fall in this category.

Highly processed foods now account for the majority of calories consumed in the United States and have been linked to higher risks of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and heart disease.

Some medical groups are in favor of that change.

“The American Medical Association applauds the Administration’s new Dietary Guidelines for spotlighting the highly processed foods, sugar-sweetened beverages, and excess sodium that fuel heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and other chronic illnesses,” said Bobby Mukkamala, MD, president of the American Medical Association (AMA), in a statement.

The AMA said it plans to expand physician education and clinical resources to help translate the guidelines into everyday care.

Whole-Fat Dairy and Red Meat Are Newly Prominent

The most controversial element of the new guidelines is their treatment of saturated fat, including the kind in red meat and whole-fat dairy.

For decades, federal guidance has encouraged limiting saturated fat because of its link to higher LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and increased risk of heart disease and stroke — a position still supported by the American Heart Association.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has described the new guidance as reversing that policy. Discouraging saturated fat intake, he has argued, failed to curb obesity and metabolic disease.

The new guidelines technically keep the recommendation that no more than 10 percent of daily calories should come from saturated fat. At the same time, they encourage people to prioritize foods naturally high in saturated fat, including red meat, butter, beef tallow, and full-fat dairy.

Health experts warned that this combination could confuse consumers and lead to excess saturated fat intake.

Many Core Food Recommendations Are the Same

Despite the framing, many core elements of federal nutrition advice remain intact.

The guidelines continue to encourage eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, choosing whole grains over refined carbohydrates, limiting added sugars, and reducing sodium intake. They do not explicitly instruct Americans to eat more saturated fat, nor do they change long-standing sodium limits.