Exclusive: An inside look at how the new dietary guidelines were crafted

Behind the guidelines: industry-funded studies, opaque science, and crushing deadline pressure.

January 17, 2026 Check out STAT+

Sponsored By

Support our journalism with a special STAT+ deal: Become a subscriber for less than $4 a week. Thanks for reading!

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images STAT+ | Behind new dietary guidelines: Industry-funded studies, opaque science, crushing deadline pressure A look at the "outrageous" timeline and influence issues on the scientific panel that led to a new food pyramid. By Isabella Cueto Kiichiro Sato/AP STAT+ | ChatGPT and Claude get into the business of health advice. Should you trust them? As ChatGPT and Claude launch services to give consumers health advice, experts caution that the technology underlying chatbots comes with inherent risks. By Brittany Trang Stephen Lam/Getty Images Emoji have entered the chat. Is that a good thing for electronic health records? Study finding increased use of emojis in health records raises questions of patient understanding, perceived professionalism, and even legal liability. By Katie Palmer Hospitals and doctors are ignoring RFK Jr.'s new vaccine schedule and relying on pediatricians' guidance instead Leading health systems plan to follow the vaccine schedule from the American Academy of Pediatrics, which largely matches the previous U.S. policy. By Daniel Payne STAT+ | Pazdur warns that politics, 'chaos' are damaging FDA Pazdur, who worked at the FDA for 26 years, abruptly left the agency last month after he said there were "promises made, promises not kept." By Elaine Chen STAT+ | Epic sues health information network over nearly 300,000 illegally accessed records Electronic health records software maker Epic Systems is suing Health Gorilla over improperly accessing nearly 300,000 patient records. By Brittany Trang MAHA says its new food pyramid is affordable and healthy. We asked experts Food economists test if MAHA's new dietary guidelines are cheaper than highly processed foods, finds protein choices and total calories to be the key. By Sarah Todd STAT+ | Should Medicare automatically pay for medical devices that the FDA deems 'breakthrough'? As Congress considers automatic Medicare coverage for 'breakthrough' devices, experts caution that it could drive up costs without improving patient outcomes. By Katie Palmer

More around STAT

Check out more exclusive coverage with a STAT+ subscription Read premium in-depth biotech, pharma, policy, and life science coverage and analysis with all of our STAT+ articles.

---

Enjoying Weekend Reads? Tell us about your experience Continue reading the latest health & science news with the STAT app Download on the App Store or get it on Google Play

STAT, 1 Exchange Place, Boston, MA ©2026, All Rights Reserved. I no longer wish to receive STAT emails

Update Newsletter Preferences     •    Contact Us     •    Advertise with Us     •    View in Browser