Recent years have been defined by historic events: a global pandemic, geopolitical upheaval,the (well-deserved) re-election of President Trump, and the long-awaited capture of narcoterrorist dictator Nicolás Maduro by the Trump administration. Yet one of the most consequential shifts in America isn’t just happening overseas. After decades of flawed and confusing nutrition guidance, the MAHA movement is resetting and reshaping how we think about food. The new U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Department of Agriculture (USDA) food guidelines reflect that shift. The food pyramid is back, and it finally makes sense, especially for Hispanic Americans.
Why These Guidelines Matter
Every five years, typically aligned with a new presidential administration, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture publish updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans based on the latest scientific research on nutrition and consumption. The two agencies have been responsible for issuing these guidelines since the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act of 1990, though federal nutrition guidance dates back to 1977 with the first major effort known as the McGovern Report.
For Hispanic families in the United States, these changes carry particular significance. Federal dietary guidelines shape school meals, public health programs, and nutrition standards that ultimately affect Hispanic households. Many of the principles reflected in the updated food pyramid align closely with traditional Hispanic diets that emphasize protein, dairy, fruits, vegetables, and home-cooked meals. For communities that have seen rising rates of obesity and diabetes after decades of reliance on ultra-processed foods and excessive processed carbohydrates, the shift represents both validation and a course correction.
Because of this reach, updates to the guidelines have long been closely watched and, in recent years, increasingly scrutinized, especially as trends show that Americans face rising rates of obesity, cancer, and other chronic diseases. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has emphasized the severity of the nation’s chronic disease crisis and tied it directly to diet as part of the administration’s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda, including in the commission’s chronic disease plan.
The latest update responded to pressure from health-focused Americans, including parents and wellness advocates, who hoped for guidance that reflects widely accepted principles such as prioritizing protein and whole foods while reducing reliance on large portions of grains and ultra-processed foods. In the United States, more than half of the calories consumed at home by both adults and children come from ultra-processed foods, according to a 2025 analysis from the National Center for Health Statistics. High consumption of these foods has been linked to more than 30 health conditions, including Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and mental health disorders.
What’s in the New Food Plan and How It Breaks From MyPlate and the 1990s Model
The updated 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines mark a clear departure from recent nutrition frameworks and, in many ways, return to a more structured food pyramid approach first introduced in the early 1990s. The difference this time is emphasis. The new model prioritizes protein, dairy, healthy fats, vegetables, and fruit, while moving away from the grain-heavy guidance that dominated previous decades.
It may sound hard to believe now, but during the 1990s, federal food guidance encouraged Americans to consume as many as 11 servings of bread, pasta, cereal, and other grains per day, while limiting meat and dairy to just two or three servings. That guidance shaped eating habits for an entire generation and contributed to widespread confusion about what a healthy diet actually looks like. The new food plan reflects a long-overdue correction. It recognizes that nuance matters and that effective nutrition guidance must reflect how people actually eat, live, and maintain health, not a one-size-fits-all formula built around excessive carbohydrates.
Unlike previous guidance, at the top of the updated pyramid are higher recommended servings of protein sources, including red meat, poultry, fish, and eggs, as well as whole milk/dairy sources, alongside fruits and leafy vegetables. This top tier reflects what should make up the largest share of daily intake. As the pyramid narrows, it signals foods that should be consumed more selectively and in moderation, such as whole grains, while severely limiting refined carbohydrates.
By contrast, MyPlate, first introduced in 2011 and later modified in 2018, was visually accessible and easy for families to follow but failed to account for the complexity of real dietary needs. Its one-size-fits-all approach offered limited guidance on portion variability, individual metabolic differences, body composition, or lifestyle factors. The framework also drew criticism for minimizing the role of healthy fats and oversimplifying nutrition at a time when chronic disease rates were accelerating.
How This Will Influence Both U.S. and Global Nutrition
For Hispanic families in the United States and for readers across Latin America, this shift feels personal and validating. It is not just another policy update coming out of Washington. It is a long-overdue correction that reflects what many families have been saying for years about food quality, health, and common sense.
What stands out about this moment is that the United States is finally willing to look beyond its own broken systems and learn from countries that have done food quality better, particularly in Europe. At the same time, this change is not being driven by top-down mandates. It is being driven by consumers. People are paying attention to ingredients, protein intake, and how their food is prepared, and companies are responding because they have to.
We are already seeing this play out in real time. Major mainstream brands like Chipotle, Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, and Steak ’n Shake are adjusting menus toward higher-protein options, simpler ingredients, and traditional cooking fats. Steak ’n Shake’s decision to switch to beef tallow did not happen in a vacuum. It happened because customers are asking better questions and demanding better food. The rise of seed-oil-free restaurants and wellness-focused cafes tells the same story. This is the market speaking clearly.
That matters beyond the United States. American food trends have a way of traveling, especially through multinational chains that operate across Latin America. When U.S. consumers start demanding higher-quality food, those expectations often follow into other markets. This is especially important for a region already grappling with rising obesity, diabetes, and diet-related chronic disease after years of moving away from traditional diets and toward ultra-processed foods.
Many of our traditional diets already centered on protein, whole foods, healthy fats, and home-cooked meals. The problem was never our culture. The problem was a food system that replaced it with cheap, processed alternatives and called it progress. Seeing national guidelines move closer to what many families already practiced or attempted to continue practicing feels less like something new and more like a return to common sense.
At its core, this moment reflects something bigger. A reset driven by people and real families, not bureaucratic politics or lobbyists for once. And if this direction holds, it has the potential to reshape food markets across the globe and restore trust in a system that should work for our health, not against it.
Recent years have been defined by historic events: a global pandemic, geopolitical upheaval,the (well-deserved) re-election of President Trump, and the long-awaited capture of narcoterrorist dictator Nicolás Maduro by the Trump administration. Yet one of the most consequential shifts in America isn’t just happening overseas. After decades of flawed and confusing nutrition guidance, the MAHA movement is resetting and reshaping how we think about food. The new U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Department of Agriculture (USDA) food guidelines reflect that shift. The food pyramid is back, and it finally makes sense, especially for Hispanic Americans.
Why These Guidelines Matter
Every five years, typically aligned with a new presidential administration, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Agriculture publish updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans based on the latest scientific research on nutrition and consumption. The two agencies have been responsible for issuing these guidelines since the National Nutrition Monitoring and Related Research Act of 1990, though federal nutrition guidance dates back to 1977 with the first major effort known as the McGovern Report.
For Hispanic families in the United States, these changes carry particular significance. Federal dietary guidelines shape school meals, public health programs, and nutrition standards that ultimately affect Hispanic households. Many of the principles reflected in the updated food pyramid align closely with traditional Hispanic diets that emphasize protein, dairy, fruits, vegetables, and home-cooked meals. For communities that have seen rising rates of obesity and diabetes after decades of reliance on ultra-processed foods and excessive processed carbohydrates, the shift represents both validation and a course correction.
Because of this reach, updates to the guidelines have long been closely watched and, in recent years, increasingly scrutinized, especially as trends show that Americans face rising rates of obesity, cancer, and other chronic diseases. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has emphasized the severity of the nation’s chronic disease crisis and tied it directly to diet as part of the administration’s “Make America Healthy Again” agenda, including in the commission’s chronic disease plan.
The latest update responded to pressure from health-focused Americans, including parents and wellness advocates, who hoped for guidance that reflects widely accepted principles such as prioritizing protein and whole foods while reducing reliance on large portions of grains and ultra-processed foods. In the United States, more than half of the calories consumed at home by both adults and children come from ultra-processed foods, according to a 2025 analysis from the National Center for Health Statistics. High consumption of these foods has been linked to more than 30 health conditions, including Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and mental health disorders.
What’s in the New Food Plan and How It Breaks From MyPlate and the 1990s Model
The updated 2025–2030 Dietary Guidelines mark a clear departure from recent nutrition frameworks and, in many ways, return to a more structured food pyramid approach first introduced in the early 1990s. The difference this time is emphasis. The new model prioritizes protein, dairy, healthy fats, vegetables, and fruit, while moving away from the grain-heavy guidance that dominated previous decades.
It may sound hard to believe now, but during the 1990s, federal food guidance encouraged Americans to consume as many as 11 servings of bread, pasta, cereal, and other grains per day, while limiting meat and dairy to just two or three servings. That guidance shaped eating habits for an entire generation and contributed to widespread confusion about what a healthy diet actually looks like. The new food plan reflects a long-overdue correction. It recognizes that nuance matters and that effective nutrition guidance must reflect how people actually eat, live, and maintain health, not a one-size-fits-all formula built around excessive carbohydrates.
Unlike previous guidance, at the top of the updated pyramid are higher recommended servings of protein sources, including red meat, poultry, fish, and eggs, as well as whole milk/dairy sources, alongside fruits and leafy vegetables. This top tier reflects what should make up the largest share of daily intake. As the pyramid narrows, it signals foods that should be consumed more selectively and in moderation, such as whole grains, while severely limiting refined carbohydrates.
By contrast, MyPlate, first introduced in 2011 and later modified in 2018, was visually accessible and easy for families to follow but failed to account for the complexity of real dietary needs. Its one-size-fits-all approach offered limited guidance on portion variability, individual metabolic differences, body composition, or lifestyle factors. The framework also drew criticism for minimizing the role of healthy fats and oversimplifying nutrition at a time when chronic disease rates were accelerating.
How This Will Influence Both U.S. and Global Nutrition
For Hispanic families in the United States and for readers across Latin America, this shift feels personal and validating. It is not just another policy update coming out of Washington. It is a long-overdue correction that reflects what many families have been saying for years about food quality, health, and common sense.
What stands out about this moment is that the United States is finally willing to look beyond its own broken systems and learn from countries that have done food quality better, particularly in Europe. At the same time, this change is not being driven by top-down mandates. It is being driven by consumers. People are paying attention to ingredients, protein intake, and how their food is prepared, and companies are responding because they have to.
We are already seeing this play out in real time. Major mainstream brands like Chipotle, Starbucks, Chick-fil-A, and Steak ’n Shake are adjusting menus toward higher-protein options, simpler ingredients, and traditional cooking fats. Steak ’n Shake’s decision to switch to beef tallow did not happen in a vacuum. It happened because customers are asking better questions and demanding better food. The rise of seed-oil-free restaurants and wellness-focused cafes tells the same story. This is the market speaking clearly.
That matters beyond the United States. American food trends have a way of traveling, especially through multinational chains that operate across Latin America. When U.S. consumers start demanding higher-quality food, those expectations often follow into other markets. This is especially important for a region already grappling with rising obesity, diabetes, and diet-related chronic disease after years of moving away from traditional diets and toward ultra-processed foods.
Many of our traditional diets already centered on protein, whole foods, healthy fats, and home-cooked meals. The problem was never our culture. The problem was a food system that replaced it with cheap, processed alternatives and called it progress. Seeing national guidelines move closer to what many families already practiced or attempted to continue practicing feels less like something new and more like a return to common sense.
At its core, this moment reflects something bigger. A reset driven by people and real families, not bureaucratic politics or lobbyists for once. And if this direction holds, it has the potential to reshape food markets across the globe and restore trust in a system that should work for our health, not against it.
