SEOUL, January 10 (AJP) - The United States government on Friday released updated 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans that, for the first time, include fermented foods such as kimchi as part of recommended diets and mark a significant shift in federal nutrition policy.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins jointly unveiled the guidelines at a White House briefing in Washington, saying the recommendations will guide federal nutrition standards over the next five years, including school meals, military food programs and assistance schemes such as SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program).
The new guidelines emphasize eating whole, minimally processed foods and increasing intake of protein, healthy fats, vegetables, fruits and whole grains. They move away from diets centered on ultra-processed foods and added sugars, which are strongly discouraged, and raise the recommended daily protein intake from 0.8 grams to 1.2–1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight.
A notable addition in the guidelines is the inclusion of fermented foods — including kimchi, sauerkraut, kefir and miso — under recommendations for supporting gut health alongside vegetables and high-fiber foods. The document cites the importance of diverse microbiome health in its dietary guidance.
The guidelines also ease past negative assessments of animal-based foods such as red meat, eggs and seafood, and allow consumption of whole-fat dairy products and animal fats, while continuing to caution against dairy products with added sugars.
Kennedy described the overhaul as a “return to real food” and part of the government’s broader effort to address chronic disease, which officials say is driven in large part by highly processed diets.
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans are updated every five years by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture. The 2025–2030 edition reflects what federal officials described as the most significant reset of national nutrition policy in decades.
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