Dye-Free Doritos and Real Sugar Coca-Cola Will Not Save America

“Make America Healthy Again” is a great slogan, and I am all for it. Like many Americans, I believe the food system is a mess. It does not take much time in a grocery store to realize that what we eat is chemically engineered garbage packaged in bright colors and sold as “snacks.” But as the anti-seed oil, dye-free, non-GMO, raw milk revival grows louder on social media, it is worth saying the part most people won’t: 

The problem is not just what we eat. It is how much we eat. 

Americans do not just eat junk. We eat a lot of it, and we eat constantly. Until the real issue of overconsumption is confronted, no amount of clean-label cereal is going to fix the crisis. 

I have spent nearly two decades in law enforcement, and I have seen firsthand how poor health taxes our emergency medical services and hospital systems and how it drags our country down. This epidemic also makes it harder to find physically capable applicants for jobs that are already short on qualified applicants. If we do not start expecting more from ourselves, we will end up with a nation unable to defend its borders or care for its people. 

The U.S. now spends over$4.5 trillion a year (nearly 20% of GDP) on health care. Most of those dollars are taxpayer funded through Medicare, Medicaid, the Veterans Affairs, and state health programs. These systems are overloaded with preventable conditions: heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, and liver failure—all often rooted in lifestyle. Not bad luck. Not a lack of access. Not systemic oppression. Lifestyle. 

In 1970, the average American consumed around 2,200 calories a day. Today, numerous statistics suggest this number is well over 3,000 calories a day and these calories are not being burned off. Physical activity levels have dropped across nearly every age group. Americans walk less, work sedentary jobs, drive constantly, and spend more time in front of screens. As a nation, we eat more and move less. This is the real formula for the crisis, not merely what is in our food, but how little we use the fuel we constantly take in. 

You cannot outrun portion size by eating dye-free cookies and pasture-raised mayonnaise. We have convinced ourselves that it is the food system at fault, not our decisions. We want freedom without discipline. That is not health. It is delusion. 

Here is the truth: 
• The main problem isn’t red dye, it’s the third plate. 
• The main problem isn’t soda, it’s the daily 48 ounces. 
• The main problem isn’t chemicals, it’s eating like kings and moving like slugs. 

America has so much readily accessible and affordable food we are physically and fiscally drowning in it. 

Politically, it is convenient to blame Big Food, Big Pharma, or Big Government. And to be fair, they do deserve some of the blame. But no amount of regulation will solve this problem. We have traded self-control for self-indulgence and labeled it wellness. 

There are no shortcuts. Healthy choices are uncomfortable and inconvenient, but worth it. Discipline is the answer to America’s health crisis, and it remains the only lasting fix with no downsides or trade-offs. 

If we want to protect the next generation from this mess, and if we want any hope of restoring fiscal sanity in government, we must confront the real root of the health crisis: not chemicals, not corporations, but a culture of overindulgence and excuses. Confronting this issue will be much more successful if said with compassion, not cruelty.  

This is not about shaming anyone, it is about loving our fellow citizens enough to tell the truth. Obesity is not OK. Sedentary life is not OK. This is a national health crisis and pretending otherwise under the banner of body positivity or self-acceptance is not kindness, it is deceit. When personal health becomes a public burden, we all have a stake in it. 

We need to stop lying to ourselves and to each other. We need to encourage one another to eat less, move more, and expect more: starting at home, in our neighborhoods, in our schools, in our churches, and in our public policy. 

Efforts to reduce unnecessary chemicals in our food supply matter, and breakthroughs like GLP-1 medications offer real help to many, but all of it will have minor positive impact if the recurring root issue is not addressed. 

The real fix, eating less and moving more, is free. It does not generate revenue, headlines, or lobbying power. No company or institution stands to profit from discipline and personal responsibility. Likewise, politicians are not eager to champion a message that might offend their voters. 

This is why almost no one is pushing the most glaring solution: portion control. This responsibility falls to us. 

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