Information about the Aspen Ideas Festival is here. I am scheduled for a session, The American Wellness Paradox, currently scheduled from 11:00-11:50 a.m., at the East Lawn Tent. This will be a discussion with senior HHS policy advisor, Calley Means. Here’s the blurb on it: “Americans are spending more than ever on healthcare, supplements, wellness trends, and “clean eating,” yet rates of chronic disease and metabolic illness continue to climb. As skepticism fuels the rise of movements like MAHA, debates over what Americans should eat have become deeply cultural, political, and economic. Two influential voices with sharply different perspectives on nutrition and food science explore how food systems, farming practices, consumer culture, and the wellness industry collided to create one of the defining public health debates of our time.”
IOM Report on School Food Standards: Phase I
The Institute of Medicine (IOM) has a committee doing a big study that will lead to recommendations for improved nutrient standards for school breakfast and lunch programs sponsored by USDA. The committee has just released its “Phase I” report, which explains how it plans to go about setting those standards and asks for public input. This report is available online as a pdf (go to “Read” and click on “full text”) so you can read it and let the committee know what you think of its approach. For anyone interested in the school meal situation, the report is a great place to start. It gives the history of the programs and explains why so many people think changes are needed. It will be interesting to see where the committee goes with this project. Stay tuned!
