In a Fox News interview last week, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suggested that poor nutrition played a role in making an unvaccinated school-age child in West Texas’ Mennonite community the first person to die in the United States of measles in 10 years. “It’s exceedingly difficult for measles to kill a healthy individual,” Kennedy stated, adding that “there’s a connection between those who suffer from measles and individuals who lack proper nutrition or don’t engage in regular physical activity.”
Kennedy’s celebration of fast food directly contradicts his stance on nutrition’s role in disease outcomes.
Then, a few days later, Kennedy appeared on Sean Hannity’s Fox News program and praised Steak ’n Shake’s decision to fry its french fries in beef tallow. “Steak ’n Shake has been fantastic,” the health secretary and vocal seed-oil opponent proclaimed. “We are very thankful to them for RFK’ing their french fries. They’ve turned my name into a verb.”
Kennedy’s celebration of fast food directly contradicts his stance on nutrition’s role in disease outcomes. And, to be clear, linking poor nutrition to a measles death — as a way to avoid taking accountability for his disparagement of childhood immunizations — is dishonest and insulting. Though Kennedy characterized West Texas as “somewhat of a food desert” and suggested malnutrition “may have been an issue” for the child who died, his remarks were promptly refuted by health officials in Texas who reported the child had “no known underlying conditions.”
Dr. Wendy Parker, a Gaines County, Texas, physician who serves numerous Mennonite patients, directly challenged Kennedy’s characterization. She pointed out that Mennonites typically avoid processed foods, raise their own livestock and bake their own bread. “They’re the healthiest people around,” she asserted. “Nutritionally, I would compare them to anyone.”
And, still, not only did that child die, but an unvaccinated adult in New Mexico also tested positive for measles after the death. There had been more than 250 cases of measles and 22 hospitalizations in Texas and New Mexico as of Thursday afternoon. Most of the cases have been of school-age children who are either unvaccinated or whose vaccination statuses are unknown.
Kennedy is sinking to new levels of misinformation to blame this measles outbreak on nutrition — and also spreading misinformation when he suggests that Steak ’n Shake’s beef-fried french fries are healthier. His promotion of beef tallow over seed oils misses the essential point: Fast-food french fries, regardless of what they’re fried in, are processed, calorie-dense foods with minimal nutritional value. It’s precisely the type of food that contributes to America’s chronic disease epidemic, which Kennedy has vowed to address as HHS secretary.
Kennedy’s false and contradictory messages are problematic in and of themselves, but they’re especially troubling in light of additional actions by HHS that have incapacitated health professionals, researchers and public health authorities. Recent termination of the National Institutes of Health funds for vaccine hesitancy research will be counterproductive and only widen the chasm of distrust among the American public. The science on measles is clear: Vaccination is the most effective prevention strategy. Two doses of the MMR vaccine provide 97% protection. But Kennedy wrongly claimed to Hannity that the measles vaccine itself is deadly. Before vaccines were available, measles killed approximately 500 children a year in the United States — many of whom were previously healthy. The virus doesn’t discriminate based on dietary habits. For every 1,000 people infected with measles in the United States, there are one to three deaths, and approximately 40% of those who were infected last year required hospitalization. These aren’t statistics that can be mitigated by avoiding seed oils or embracing beef tallow or exercising. Every utterance from a top health official matters. As wrong as Kennedy is to cite poor nutrition as a reason a person may die of measles, and as wrong as he is to try to sell people on french fries fried in beef tallow, there are people who are going to believe him. When our nation’s top health official wrongly blames poor nutrition for a measles death and then celebrates eating fast food, we face a dangerous contradiction that undermines public trust and confuses Americans seeking reliable health guidance.
Dr. Kavita Patel
Dr. Kavita Patel is a teaching professor of medicine, Division of Hospital Medicine, at Stanford University and a board-certified internal medicine physician. She served in the Obama administration as director of policy for the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs and Public Engagement in the White House. Her area of expertise is around the intersection of health policy, clinical medicine and innovation. She also spends time advising venture capital and is a medical contributor for NBC News. 
