The wild run of the Donald Trump brigade in the United States is already bringing negative fallouts: the US economy contracted in the first quarter of 2025, tourist arrivals are reported dramatically down, and Elon Musk’s chainsaw has effectively crippled many wings of the US government as more departments are downsized or eliminated. But amid this whirlwind not seen in 100 years, something good appears to have emerged from the controversial US Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Last fortnight, Kennedy uttered three simple words: “sugar is poison”. And he set out his agenda to check its use in products sold by the big food companies. “Four years from now, we are going to have most of these products off the market, or you will know about them when you go to the grocery store,” the Health Secretary said.

This is a dramatic and significant change, wholly positive and clearly the right step but it comes from a “wrong” person — one who is otherwise a conspiracy theorist, is known for anti-scientific beliefs and rants against vaccines. The medical and research fraternity argues that he will eventually harm health outcomes and increase vaccine-hesitancy among the population, making it challenging to fight disease – a Health Secretary against health. But Kennedy also has a large and positive agenda against ‘Big Food’ (and ‘Big Pharma’) companies selling sodas and sweetened packaged products that are known to be addictive and responsible for the obesity and diabetes epidemic in America, where 38% of children, he says,........

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