The key role of eradicating institutional corruption.
For decades, the United States has faced an increasingly profound public health crisis: epidemics of obesity, chronic diseases, dependence on medications, and a food industry dominated by ultra-processed products. The figures are alarming: over 40% of American adults are obese, cardiovascular diseases remain the leading cause of death, and healthcare spending exceeds $4 trillion annually (Nestle 5). How did the most developed country in the world achieve this? A resounding answer is that the United States cannot become healthy again until corruption within federal agencies and the industries that control health, food, and agriculture is eradicated.
Institutional corruption within agencies like the FDA (Food and Drug Administration), USDA (Department of Agriculture), CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), and NIH (National Institutes of Health) has severely undermined their public mission. These organizations, theoretically tasked with safeguarding public health, often cater to the interests of large corporations. For instance, it is well-known that many high-ranking officials at the FDA have previously worked for pharmaceutical or food companies, later returning to these industries after their government service. This phenomenon, known as the “revolving door,” creates blatant conflicts of interest where the priority is no longer the public welfare but corporate profits (Lurie and Wolfe).
A representative case is the expedited approval of certain drugs with serious side effects or minimal demonstrated benefits. Pressure from pharmaceutical companies, partially funding the FDA through review fees, leads to compromised decisions. Marcia Angell, former editor of The New England Journal of Medicine, argues that pharmaceutical companies “have corrupted the mission of medicine” by manipulating clinical studies, influencing universities, and even controlling scientific journals (Angell 15). Similarly, instead of promoting sustainable and healthy agricultural policies, the USDA continues to subsidize crops like corn and soybeans, key raw materials for ultra-processed products. This policy has favored large agribusinesses such as Monsanto and Cargill at the expense of consumer health and the environment (Nestle 92).
On the other hand, the CDC and NIH have been accused on numerous occasions of omitting or downplaying critical data when it conflicts with commercial interests. During the pandemic, for example, transparency of decisions and recommendations was questioned, leading to a loss of public trust. Meanwhile, government subsidies continue to bolster large food companies, flooding markets with products loaded with sugar, trans fats, and harmful additives, while deceptive marketing campaigns target children and vulnerable populations (Moss 25). A report from the Center for Science in the Public Interest warns that many common artificial colorings, like Red 40 and Yellow 5, are linked to behavioral problems and neurobehavioral effects in children, offering no nutritional benefit (Center for Science in the Public Interest). Despite these scientific warnings, regulatory agencies have kept these additives on the market, reflecting their lack of independence in the face of industrial pressure.
The new Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., has clearly raised this concern. In a recent interview, Kennedy recalled: “When my uncle John F. Kennedy was president in the 1960s, we were the healthiest people in the world. One of the basic assumptions of our country was that because we were robust and vigorous, we were responsible for our country being the land of the free and the home of the brave. We were the greatest industrial power in the world and owned half the planet’s wealth. And part of that was due to the vitality of our society. Only 3% of American children had chronic diseases. Today, it’s around 60%” (Kennedy). This alarming statistic clearly exposes the progressive health collapse and underscores the urgent need to restore integrity to the public health system.
In response, Kennedy launched the MAHA (Make America Healthy Again) movement, an initiative focused on dismantling the corrupt ties between government agencies and the industries that influence them and reclaiming citizens’ collective health. The goal of the MAHA movement is not only to restore statistics but to rebuild national vitality from its roots: real food, independent science, preventive health, and public policies centered on human beings, not capital.
Those who defend the status quo argue that large companies are necessary for economic development and medical innovation. While it is true that these industries can bring advances, they should not do so at the expense of public health. Ethical principles, not profit, must guide a genuinely innovative and functional system. Health cannot be treated as a commodity.
Conclusion
The United States will not be able to regain its health as long as its institutions tasked with protecting it are infiltrated by corrupt corporate interests. The root of many of its health crises is not just a lack of education or unequal access to medical services. Still, systemic corruption that distorts public policies approves harmful products and sidelines real solutions. Only by dismantling this web of vested interests and restoring integrity to federal agencies can the country aspire to a proper recovery of its population’s well-being. The MAHA movement and voices like that of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. could mark the beginning of that necessary change.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Luis Henry Contreras Del Aguila
Food Industries Engineer Universidad Nacional Agraria de la Selva- Tingo Maria- Peru
Master in Agribusiness Administration ESAN University – Lima-Peru
CEO, Country Agribusiness
REFERENCES
Angell, Marcia. The Truth About the Drug Companies: How They Deceive Us and What to Do About It. Random House, 2005.
Center for Science in Public Interest. Food Dyes: A Rainbow of Risks. 2016, www.cspinet.org/sites/default/files/attachment/food-dyes-rainbow-of-risks.pdf.
Kennedy Jr., Robert F. Interview with Health Freedom Summit. YouTube, uploaded by Health Freedom Summit, 2024, www.youtube.com/watch?v=exemyQukqHA.
Lurie, Peter, and Sidney M. Wolfe. Testimony before the Subcommittee on Human Resources and Intergovernmental Relations on the Adequacy of FDA’s Oversight of the Medical Device Industry. Public Citizen Health Research Group, 1996.
Moss, Michael. Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us. Random House, 2013.
Nestle, Marion. Food Politics: How the Food Industry Influences Nutrition and Health. University of California Press, 2013.