The Great Food Tug-of-War: What the 2026 Guidelines Mean for Your Dinner Plate

-- by Bri the Dietitian

If you’ve been watching the news lately, you’ve probably noticed that the "experts" in Washington are having a massive disagreement about what belongs on your grocery list.

On one side, we have the 2025 Scientific Report—the "traditional" advice we’ve heard for years about counting calories and eating more plants. On the other side, we have the 2026 HHS directives from RFK Jr., which are essentially declaring war on the chemicals and "ultra-processed" junk in our food supply. To be clear, I'm not sold on either for a few different evidence-based reasons, which is why I developed my own approach to cut the noise and help you apply the best advice practically.

As a Dietitian, I’m watching this tug-of-war closely. I even released a video this week explaining some of the REAL scientific concepts behind avoiding ultra-processed food and the disease process and aging. But as a mom who spent the whole day out of home yesterday, doing homeschool at the library in between kids' physical activity classes, I know you don't care about the politics—you just want to know what to feed your family so they actually feel good.

Here is my "Clinical-but-Real" take on how to navigate these two worlds.

Beef Tallow vs. Soy Milk: The Great Contradiction

The new guidelines take a "sledgehammer" approach to processed foods, which sounds good—until you see what they’ve cut. They’ve essentially scrubbed fortified soy milk from the "healthy" list because it’s considered "processed." We can't find nutritious nut butters anywhere on the graphic, because God forbid it that we process nuts by crushing them into pieces, just like you mind blend a whole food smoothie.

Think about that: We are being told to avoid a nutrient-dense, cancer-fighting plant milk because it’s "processed," yet the same guidelines are explicitly recommending beef tallow and butter as "healthy" cooking fats.

As your Dietitian, let me be blunt: The math doesn’t work. You cannot prioritize high-fat animal products and beef tallow while claiming to keep saturated fat under 10%. This graphic is a clear gift to the meat and dairy industries that leaves the growing population of vegetarians, vegans, the lactose-intolerant, the dairy- and egg-allergic, and anyone looking for heart-healthy fuel totally stranded. It's a darn good thing we have "ancient" knowledge about these things... ie. The Harvard Healthy Plate, Canada's Food Guide (a pioneer in plant-forward thinking), The Blue Zones Guidelines, and Dr. Greger's Daily Dozen, to name a few.

My advice: Instead of fake butters or beef tallow, go for Whole Food fats. Think walnuts, flaxseeds, almonds, hemp hearts, chia seeds, and avocados. These are "clean" fuels that "lube" your brain without the toxic processing or the saturated fat spike.

It’s Not Just About Calories—It’s About Chemistry

For a long time, we were told that if we just hit our "macros" and kept calories low, we’d be healthy. The 2025 report still leans heavily on this. But the 2026 shift is asking a deeper question: What is actually IN that calorie?

If you’re eating a "low-calorie" snack that is packed with synthetic dyes, seed oils, and preservatives, your body doesn't see a "diet food." It sees inflammation. It sees the eventual product of "internal rust" and tries to respond to that by flaring up your body systems and asking for more nutrient--rich foods by increasing your appetite and decreasing your power of resistance.

My Advice: Stop obsessing over the calorie count for a second and start looking at the ingredient list. If it looks like a chemistry experiment, your body is going to have to work overtime just to "flush" those toxins out. Then again, if you're looking at a product like fortified organic soy milk and still can't decipher a few of the ingredients, you're probably in the clear.

The "Seed Oil" vs. "Plant-Forward" Debate

The 2025 guidelines love "plant-based" oils like canola and soybean. But the new 2026 recommendations are sounding the alarm on how these oils are processed.

My Advice: You know I’m a huge advocate for plant-based eating. But "Plant-Based" doesn't mean "Processed-Based." I often clarify that my clients are heading towards a more "Whole Food, Plant--based" diet - and often their reasons are equally for health, for sustainability, and for the environment. And, as far as I have researched, the addition of these oils in place of a meat-heavy, egg-heavy, dairy-rich diet would not tip the scales in the favor of eating like a carnivore. So...

• Instead of fake butters and processed oils, go for the Whole Food fats.

• Think walnuts, flaxseeds, hemp hearts, and avocados. These are "clean" fuels that "lube" your brain and cool down your inflammation without the toxic processing.

  
  

The War on Ultra-Processed Foods (UPF)

This is where the 2026 movement gets it right. We are finally admitting that high-fructose corn syrup and artificial dyes are contributing to our metabolic crisis.

My Advice: Treat your kitchen prep like a craft - bringing together single ingredient by single ingredient unless you need some whole food shortcuts. When you’re meal prepping (or even just throwing together a quick lunch between Jiu Jitsu and swimming), try the "Single Ingredient" Rule. * An apple is an apple. A bag of chopped mixed greens is "processed" by a factory, but it's still a whole food. A few other notes...

• Tofu is (mostly) just soybeans.

• Oats are just oats - but the level of processing increases from groats to steel cut to whole rolled to quick rolled to flour to... a sugary oatmeal cookie? The further you get away from the original plant, sometimes the easier it is to digest, and sometimes it has additional ingredients added which can subtract its nutritional value in my eyes.

  
  

The NourishMNT Roadmap: How to Plan Your 2026 Diet

You don't need a government committee to tell you how to feel better. You just need to return to the basics:

1. Clear the Rust: Focus on high-antioxidant foods (like the wild blueberries in my "Shield Smoothie") to fight the environmental toxins we can't avoid.

2. Fiber is Your Best Friend: Whether it’s 2025 or 2026 advice, everyone agrees that fiber from beans, greens, and whole grains is the key to weight loss and gut health.

3. Mind the Chemicals: If you wouldn't keep the individual ingredients on your shelf (like Red Dye #40 or BHT), why put them in your body?

The Bottom Line: Washington might be divided, but your health behaviour shouldn't be. Whether we are talking about "metabolic priming", "Whole Food Plant Based", or "Make America Healthy Again," the goal is the same: Getting back to real, whole food that heals your body from the inside out.

Feeling Overwhelmed by the Headlines? Let’s Clear the Air.

With 2025 guidelines saying one thing and 2026 "MAHA" headlines saying another, it’s easy to feel like we’re stuck as the victims in the middle of a political tug-of-war. One day a food is "healthy," the next day it’s "toxic." It’s enough to make anyone want to give up and just order a pizza.

But here is the truth: Your health shouldn't be a guessing game. You don't need to wait for a government committee to decide what’s on your plate to start feeling better. Whether you are struggling with a "short fuse" and low energy, worried about excess weight or chronic disease, or you’re trying to navigate a complex autoimmune response, you need a plan that is built for your biology—not a national average.

That’s exactly where I come in.

In my program, we cut through the noise. We don’t just "diet"; we metabolically prime your body. We focus on:

• Clearing the "Internal Rust": Using clinical nutrition to lower inflammation.

• Building a Permanent Roadmap: No more "restarting" every Monday. We build habits that fit into your actual life (even the busy library-homeschool-swimming-class days!).

• Getting You to a Place of Peace: True health isn't just a number on a scale; it’s waking up with a clear head, a steady mood, and the confidence that you are fueling your body for the long haul.

  
  

Ready to stop guessing and start healing?

I have a few spots open for a Free Discovery Call this week. We’ll look at where you are, where you want to be, and exactly how we can bridge that gap together. No confusing buzzwords or "guidelines" —just a solid plan for a permanent change.

Click Here to Book Your Call – Let's Get Started!