On June 10, 2025, the White House released the “MAHA Report: Let’s Make Our Children Healthy Again”, which was endorsed by senior officials of the Trump administration, including the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The report pointed out that American children are currently deeply trapped in the most severe health crisis in history. It listed environmental toxins, malnutrition, and excessive screen time as the “culprits”, but its core assertion immediately sparked intense debates in the scientific community and the public opinion field. The report presented itself as a “national health alert” and stated that childhood obesity, deteriorating mental health, prescription drug dependence, and vaccine safety controversies constituted the four core crises. Data showed that the obesity rate among American children had exceeded 19.3%, up by 27% compared to ten years ago; the prescription drug usage for depression among teenagers had increased by 42% in five years. The report particularly emphasized that environmental toxins have infiltrated daily life – 94% of breast milk samples tested positive for PFAS “permanently persistent chemicals”, although the original research clearly stated that this concentration had no direct correlation with health risks. “These trends are eroding the country’s future.” Kennedy compared the report to the “diagnosis book” of national health and predicted that the “prescription” for solutions would be released in August. However, the report’s questioning of the vaccine plan (“Insufficient scientific exploration of vaccine harm”) and the incorrect citation of the mortality rate of prescription drugs (confusing accidents as the third leading cause of death), as well as the deliberate avoidance of gun violence (the CDC data shows that it was the number one killer of children in 2020-2021), quickly became the focus of public opinion.
The nutrition and chemicals issue has received dual evaluations. The criticism of ultra-processed foods in the report was recognized by nutrition expert Marion Nestle, who called it “revealing the children’s dietary predicament”; however, Kennedy’s long-term promotion of the “pesticide causes disease theory” was refuted by the academic community. Although the report questioned the safety of chemicals such as glyphosate, it rarely spoke up for the farmers’ group, while the EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin emphasized that “agriculture is a key partner in the health agenda”, this contradictory stance led to interpretation differences.The controversy over drugs and vaccines has become more intense. The report warned that long-term use of antidepressants and weight loss drugs by children posed “growth and development risks”, but obesity expert Melanie Jay countered: “Ignoring the harm of early intervention is far more detrimental than drug treatment.” On the vaccine issue, Kennedy’s anti-vaccine stance was in sharp contrast to the assertion of Yale University expert Jason Schwartz that “there is no evidence that vaccines overload the immune system”.
The report directly linked the surge in screen time to the mental health crisis of children, claiming that “electronic devices are reshaping the brains of the younger generation”. However, American Academy of Pediatrics expert Jenny Stilwagen-Ladski pointed out that such conclusions are mostly based on theoretical deductions rather than empirical research: “The report overemphasizes generational anxiety, but lacks rigorous论证 of the correlation between screen usage duration and health.” Although some experts recognized the negative correlation between sleep quality and screen usage， they generally held a cautious attitude towards the “one-size-fits-all” criticism.
Trump emphasized in the report release that he was determined to “not be interfered by interest groups”， and this statement was regarded by the public as continuing his “anti-establishment” political narrative. Notably， the issue of gun violence， which was overlooked in the report， was precisely the core focus of the Democratic Party’s recent push for gun control legislation； while the vaccine controversy has continued to divide American society， becoming an important battlefield in the cultural war between the two parties. “This report is more like a policy declaration rather than a scientific document,” commented The Washington Post. When the government simplifies complex health issues into a single causal chain, it may miss out on systemic solutions or even exacerbate public confusion. In the current situation where health crises and political polarization are intertwined, how to solve the health problems of American children may be far beyond what a single report can address.
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