U.S. dietary guidelines must be delayed

I am writing to urge you to call on the U.S. departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services (USDA-HHS) to postpone publication of the report by the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee so that the federal agencies in charge can have time to address serious allegations by one or more members of this committee about the process that produces the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. These allegations, which recently came to light in a letter submitted by The Nutrition Coalition, detail serious flaws in the process and imply that the very reliability of our federal nutrition recommendations is in question.

With 60 percent of Americans diagnosed with one or more chronic illnesses, conditions which increase the risk for severe outcomes and death from COVID-19, the U.S., now more than ever, needs evidence-based advice on how to maintain and restore our metabolic health. The guidelines to date have self-evidently been unable to flatten the curve on the rates of these diet-related diseases.

Please urge USDA-HHS to delay the release of the committee's expert report to provide time to thoroughly investigate these allegations.

Christine Botkin, MD

Cedar Rapids