Over the decades, dietary guidelines have taken a diverse array of shapes, from pamphlets to wheels, from plates to pyramids. In many cases, the shapes have changed more than the recommendations they contain. This week and next, we explore those recommendations – who’s making them, how they have changed over time, and how closely they align with what we should be eating. First, we delve into the long history of dietary guidelines and how their intentions have evolved as the food landscape drastically changed over the 20th century. Then we interrogate the conflicts of interests at the heart of their formation, questioning how much these recommendations are backed by science vs industry interests. Ultimately, we come back to the question of “if few people actually use these guidelines, why should we care about them at all?” Turns out, we have lots of feelings on the matter.
| History |
| Nestle, Marion. Food politics: How the food industry influences nutrition and health. University of California press, 2019. |
| Achterberg, Cheryl, et al. “An analysis of the recent US dietary guidelines process in light of its federal mandate and a National Academies report.” PNAS nexus 1.3 (2022): pgac107. |
| Frazão, Elizabeth, ed. America’s Eating Habits: Changes & Consequences. Vol. 750. US Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service, Food and Rural Economics Division, 1999. |
| Brownell, Kelly D., and Kenneth E. Warner. “The perils of ignoring history: Big Tobacco played dirty and millions died. How similar is Big Food?.” The Milbank Quarterly 87.1 (2009): 259-294. |
| Carlson, Barbara B. History and analysis of food guides in the United States. Old Dominion University, 1991. |
| Carpenter, Kenneth J. “A short history of nutritional science: Part 1 (1785–1885).” The Journal of nutrition 133.3 (2003): 638-645. |
| Carpenter, Kenneth J. “A short history of nutritional science: part 2 (1885–1912).” The Journal of Nutrition 133.4 (2003): 975-984. |
| Carpenter, Kenneth J. “A Short History of Nutritional Science: Part 3 (1912–1944).” The Journal of Nutrition 133.10 (2003): 3023-3032. |
| Carpenter, Kenneth J. “A short history of nutritional science: part 4 (1945–1985).” The Journal of nutrition 133.11 (2003): 3331-3342. |
| Gifford, K. Dun. “Dietary fats, eating guides, and public policy: history, critique, and recommendations.” The American Journal of Medicine 113.9 (2002): 89-106. |
| Jahns, Lisa, et al. “The history and future of dietary guidance in America.” Advances in Nutrition 9.2 (2018): 136-147. |
| Klatt, Kevin C. “Make America healthy, again? The past, present and future of dietary guidelines.” Annual Review of Nutrition 45 (2025). |
| Mialon, Mélissa, et al. “Conflicts of interest for members of the US 2020 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee.” Public Health Nutrition 27.1 (2024): e69. |
| Tempels, Tjidde, Marcel Verweij, and Vincent Blok. “Big food’s ambivalence: seeking profit and responsibility for health.” American Journal of Public Health 107.3 (2017): 402-406. |
| Watts, Mary Lee, et al. “The art of translating nutritional science into dietary guidance: history and evolution of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans.” Nutrition reviews 69.7 (2011): 404-412. |
| Welsh, Susan, Carole Davis, and Anne Shaw. “A brief history of food guides in the United States.” Nutrition Today 27.6 (1992): 6-11. |
| Firsthand: Hunt, C. L., and H. W. Atwater. “How to Select Foods. I: What the Body Needs. Farmers’ Bulletin 808.” US Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC (1917). |
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