MAHA says red meat and beef tallow will make you healthy. The American Heart Assn. isnt buying it

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In an earlier era, the American Heart Assn.and the U.S.

federal government were very closely aligned on what the American public should eat and why.Dietary guidelines from the cardiovascular research nonprofit largely mirrored those published by the U.S.Department of Health and Human Services.

American Heart Assn.representatives advised the government on the science behind its dietary advice.But as is the case with many public health issues these days, the distance between the policies recommended by established medical groups and those endorsed by Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F.

Kennedy Jr.appears to be growing wider.On Tuesday, American Heart Assn.

released its updated guidelines for a heart-healthy diet.Like the new federal dietary guidelines released back in January, the document cautions against processed foods and refined sugars.But the group pressed back on some nutrition claims that Kennedy and Make America Healthy Again influencers have touted in public statements and written into federal policy.Unlike the new federally authorized inverted food pyramid, which gives top billing to an enormous cut of steak, a tray of ground meat, a hunk of cheese and carton of whole milk, the American Heart Assn.

urges plant-based proteins over red meat, and low- or nonfat dairy products over whole-fat options.In contrast to Kennedy’s declaration in January that the U.S.was “ending the war on saturated fat,” the heart association continues to recommend unsaturated fat sources over saturated ones for the sake of cardiovascular health.The heart association also pushes back on Kennedy’s well-publicized passion for beef tallow as a replacement for seed oils, which he has accused (despite shaky evidence) of “poisoning” Americans.“Animal fats (eg, beef tallow and butter) and tropical oils (eg, coconut oil, cocoa butter, and palm oil) are relative...