New Dietary Guidelines Transforming America’s Health: Brian Christine

SPEAKER 02 : 0:03

Welcome to Restoring Education in America with Priscilla Ron. She’s a master educator and author leading the conversation to restore the American mind through wisdom, virtue, and truth.

SPEAKER 03 : 0:19

Well, hello, everybody. Welcome to Restoring Education in America. I’m your host, Priscilla Ron, and I’m so thrilled that you’ve decided to tune in today. 2026 is a really exciting year. There’s a lot of school choice happening around Colorado. And I want to mention Excalibur Classical Academy. They’re a new school that’s opening this fall. And their vision and mission is to restore America’s heritage by developing servant leaders who are keepers and defenders of the principles of freedom for which our founding fathers pledged their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor. And you can learn more about them at their website, ExcaliburClassicalAcademy.org. And as a full-time teacher who’s been in the public education system for the last 32 years, I know that parents today are being asked to trust a lot. And they’re trusting what their children are fed at school, the health guidance that they receive, and the institutions making those decisions. But today I am joined by a very special guest who is going to talk about all things public health. And I’m going to welcome to the stage Admiral Brian Christine. He is the Assistant Secretary for Health at HHS. Thank you for joining me today, Admiral Christine.

SPEAKER 01 : 1:44

Priscilla, thank you so much for allowing me to be on. And I want to start by saying thank you not only to you, but truly thank you to President Trump, to Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. here at HHS, to Secretary Rawlins at USDA. Because without their leadership, without their strength, and without their inspiration, we wouldn’t have the new dietary guidelines that were released just this week. Dietary guidelines that I truly believe are going to make this country healthier. It’s going to help make America greater than she’s ever been. And it’s going to help the health of our children for generations to come.

SPEAKER 03 : 2:20

Well, Admiral. I have my own copy of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. And it is so clear, so simple to read. As a teacher, I appreciate that it’s really detailed and anybody can go on the website and print out a copy. It’s only 10 pages long. But you can also do a deeper dive on the website. But tell us about what you do at U.S. Public Health Service Commission Corps. A lot of people don’t know what that organization is all about.

SPEAKER 01 : 2:55

No, Priscilla, again, thank you because you’re right. So many people don’t. In the United States, we have the United States Public Health Service, the service devoted to advancing technology for health care, meeting disease, fighting disease. And within the Public Health Service, there is what’s called the Commission Corporation. for of the public health 5500 doctors, nurses, ther by the president. We all my rank is as a four star We carry rank, and we are actually part of the public health service, but we are what I call the tip of the spear for the public health service. We are out there. We are in uniform like the other uniformed services in the United States, the Army, the Navy, the Air Force. We don’t carry arms, but we do wage war. We wage war against chronic disease. We wage war against obesity, diabetes, deadly conditions. We are on the front lines, and I have the privilege of being the senior flag officer, in other words, the senior admiral and lead the commission corps. We are incredibly committed to the visions of President Trump and Secretary Kennedy. So thanks for asking that question because you’re right. Sometimes we feel like we’re the invisible core. People don’t know about us. But one of my goals over the next three years is to make us the visible core. I want every taxpayer to know that what they are getting for their dollars spent with the commission core is the very best in science and health care.

SPEAKER 03 : 4:27

Well, it’s been really refreshing to have you all at the forefront of making these changes, especially since the last four years. So I’m seeing our militaries more fit. I saw on social media Secretary Kennedy’s doing pull-ups at the airport. He was in Colorado over the holidays, you know.

SPEAKER 01 : 4:45

That’s right.

SPEAKER 03 : 4:46

And I thought, wow, this is really a great representation of where our government needs to be. And we have a fit military. My father served our great nation for almost 30 years in the Army. So I’m an Army brat. And I just yes, I’m so grateful for him and the example that he was. He was always running and being very, very disciplined. Unfortunately, where my father grew up in South Carolina and in the South, a lot of my relatives were morbidly obese because of the poor food choices. And I know in our community, in the Black community, we’re working really hard to change our dietary practices. What are some changes that have been made in this manual that we really need to just touch on quickly for the American citizen?

SPEAKER 01 : 5:34

yeah exactly and i appreciate that i’m from birmingham alabama that’s where i practiced up until june and i will tell you that prior dietary guidelines they weren’t just unhealthy they were really a travesty they told us to eat lots of refined food lots of sugary foods and carbohydrates our dietary guidelines have truly flipped the pyramid on its head in other words we understand that eating very small amounts of certainly almost no highly refined and processed food, none of those. We do emphasize protein, good whole nutrient dense forms of protein, fish and chicken and beef, eggs. We emphasize the fact that saturated fats are not bad. In other words, we know that saturated fats are important as we have development in making muscle, supporting brain health, supporting hormonal health in men or women. So these dietary guidelines really have flipped that pyramid. Protein is important. Certainly we know that added sugar is not a good idea, particularly in our kids. Stay away completely from highly refined processed foods. Eat whole foods, natural foods, fruits, vegetables, and protein.

SPEAKER 03 : 6:45

Well, I’m so glad that you mentioned protein. My husband listens to my radio show. And so now I can justify the $145 four ounce Wagyu beef because I think that that is probably the healthiest, most nutrient dense protein.

SPEAKER 01 : 7:00

no well i tell your husband i said number one very smart listen to your show and you mentioned that and one of the things i want people to understand is that i’ve heard some people say we’ve heard them say well to eat healthy like this it’s not affordable that’s simply not true priscilla yeah you can go to mcdonald’s and you can pay seven or eight bucks for a big mac or You can go to the store and you can buy ground beef and you can buy a pound of ground beef for $5 and make many more patties out of that. No, it’s not that it’s not affordable. We’ve been sold the lie that eating highly processed junk food is more affordable, particularly for families who have more meager means. Oh, just go to McDonald’s, buy your meal. That’s not true. We are telling the truth in these guidelines. We are preaching a gospel of truth today. in that you can’t afford to eat healthy. Follow these guidelines. Read them. We will be better off as a country. Certainly you, me, your husband, our children are going to be healthier for it.

SPEAKER 03 : 7:59

admiral i’ve seen some really interesting menus um in public education where they set the menu for a week and so one day they could have pizza mashed potatoes and a and a bun roll all on one day and say well our menu is based on the week are we gonna see changes all the way down to the public education system with breakfast and lunch menus

SPEAKER 01 : 8:22

Yeah, Priscilla, I will tell you, one of the most important things about dietary guidelines is they directly influence how we feed our children in schools. They directly influence the meals that are fed to our war fighters in the Department of War. They directly affect the foods that we all eat. And so, yes, we are going to see a difference going forward. We are going to be working hard at the Department of Health and Human Services to make sure that people understand school cafeterias, the cafeterias that feed our war fighters, that these guidelines are going to give us the strength, the resiliency that we need. Our children will be eating better than they have ever because I remember like you what it was like. We were being fed in school. You’re exactly right. This is a new day. Secretary Kennedy, Secretary Rollins and President Trump are truly leading us into a new day when it comes to health and nutrition and fitness. And I say God bless them.

SPEAKER 03 : 9:18

Well, in addition to the health conversation, we know parents have been talking about vaccines and the pressures of that. Gender dysphoria has been a very, very big conversation and concern. I live in a blue state. We’ve been fighting to protect children, protect their health. I know that your department has come out with a gender dysphoria report. Can you talk about some of the results from that report?

SPEAKER 01 : 9:45

I can, and thank you for asking about that because that’s something that’s so incredibly important to me, incredibly important to Secretary Kennedy and President Trump. Gender dysphoria in minors is a real condition. These children suffer. But what we say in our report, and this is backed up, Priscilla, with gold-level science, is the way to not treat these children is the way that my predecessor, my predecessor, as Assistant Secretary for Health. The way that he said we should treat these kids is with surgeries, mutilating surgeries, chemical castrations. No, the way we treat these children is with compassionate and competent mental health support. If parents wish, pastoral support. And the point is, we point this out very clearly in our gender dysphoria report, and we back it up with the best science that there’s ever been in this subject.

SPEAKER 03 : 10:35

Well, I know there are many people around the nation who will be in D.C. on the 13th as the U.S. Supreme Court hears some cases about this very topic. And so we just encourage people across America to just pray for the protection of our children because parents can’t be there all the time. Again, like I opened up this show saying parents trust. They’re forced to have to trust what’s happening. And Now we feel like there’s more trust and I know part of the mission is transparency, like real rugged transparency. What’s the plan? What does that look like to have more transparency and trust from the US government?

SPEAKER 01 : 11:19

I will tell you one of the hallmarks of this presidency, one of the hallmarks of Secretary Kennedy and his pledge to the American people is to lead with radical transparency. And that is something that was not present in the prior administration. I have heard so many stories from individuals who I trust at HHS about things being buried. Transparency, not at all. This is different. This is radical transparency. We back up everything we do with science that is available. People can read it and study it. We give you honest answers. One of the things that we’re not afraid of is if we make a mistake, because listen, could it happen down the road? If we make a mistake, we will always own up to those mistakes to the American people and we’ll say we were wrong and we are going to correct it. That is what we didn’t see in the last administration. Radical transparency is so important to Secretary Kennedy. Priscilla, it is so important to me that I pledge radical transparency will always be something that guides me, guides Secretary Kennedy, and we know that it guides President Trump.

SPEAKER 03 : 12:19

Well, thank you for that commitment, Admiral. I have written a book called Restoring Education in America. And the very first chapter in my book talks about fatherhood. I really, truly believe that men and fathers are the foundation of the family. So goes the father. So goes the family. So goes the community. And I know you have been at the forefront of talking about men’s health because we need strong, healthy men, strong, healthy fathers. Why is that such a passion for you? And talk about some of the things that you think men should know about their personal health.

SPEAKER 01 : 12:58

Another great question. And thank you for opening this up for discussion. I am a urologic surgeon, a urologist by training with a focus in men’s health. That’s my practice. That’s what my practice was when I was practicing men’s health specifically. Men have higher suicide rates in this country. We have a lower life expectancy than women in this country. We have higher depression rates. We have higher rates of obesity, higher rates of cardiovascular disease. Men need help in this country. There is a health crisis in men. Understand that when I advocate for a strong men’s health initiative, I always say we never take away from what we’ve done with women’s health. This is a parallel tract. It is a sibling track to the great advancements in women’s health that we have made. We need a men’s health initiative in this country. We had recently, just about a month ago, we had an expert panel on testosterone replacement at the FDA. Commissioner Marty Makary and I led this together. Amazingly well received, really shedding light and answering and refuting the lies of testosterone from the past. We want to move forward with this. We always move forward in lockstep and beside our advancements with women’s health. But you’re right this country to be healthy again, to be greater than we’ve ever been. We must have strong men leading our families. We must have strong men alongside their strong women, their wives to make strong, committed children. So I’m very passionate about this. I think now is the time for this kind of initiative. with a strong president with an incredibly strong secretary of health and human services with someone like myself and my team committed to this we can lead forward because you’re right we have to have strong men our country’s built upon that strong mother strong father strong families

SPEAKER 03 : 14:46

Yes, time to bring back the alpha men. No more beta men.

SPEAKER 01 : 14:51

No, that’s right. Today we were driving to an event, passed a church, and in the front of the church was a Catholic church, was a statue of Joseph, St. Joseph, with the Christ child on his shoulder. And to me, that represents what we should be as men. We should be strong. We should be willing to love our children, love our wives, respect our wives, hold our family upon our shoulder, because that’s how we make America great again.

SPEAKER 03 : 15:15

Yes. And contrary to what the left might say, we as women are looking for alpha men, strong men who can do a pull up. We like that kind of thing, you know. But I also know that for women, it’s a lot easier for us to say, well, I’m not feeling good. I should go to the hospital and get something checked out. And I think for men, sometimes it’s a stigma. They don’t feel comfortable going to the doctor. What do you say to men who might be concerned about being public about going to the hospital.

SPEAKER 01 : 15:46

Yeah, I think that is a great point, Priscilla. You are right. One of the things that women do so well is they do many times they take charge of their health. They take ownership for that. And kudos to women for doing that. Men, we don’t use our health resources as well as we should at a much lower rate than women. Why that is, probably a number of reasons, but we have to change that in men. We have to help men know you must get your care, you must have your annual evaluations, you must have your testosterone checked. And I believe that with a men’s health initiative in this country and leadership, again, Secretary Kennedy, president trump that we can evangelize to men hey take charge of your health owner take ownership excuse me of your health get out there get tested get exercise don’t be afraid to see a physician do like your wife and your sister and your mom did see the doctor on a regular basis

SPEAKER 03 : 16:38

I was watching social media. I don’t recall exactly when the press conference was, but they were talking about transparency and medical records and being able to access medical records. I know parents are concerned about the vaccine schedule. How do you approach these conversations as a physician and a public health leader around transparency transparency of medical records, access to your own personal records but also having a vaccine schedule that makes sense.

SPEAKER 01 : 17:13

So I think, again, two different questions that are two different subjects. And thank you for bringing that up. Regarding vaccine, if you listen to Secretary Kennedy, he will say again and again and again, vaccines save lives. What I want is to bring the best science to bear when we produce vaccines, when we evaluate vaccines. We want to have a vaccine schedule for our children that is grounded in science. We’re not afraid of science in this administration. We’re not afraid of science in this Health and Human Services team. We believe in science, and we believe in the best science to help us decide what’s right for vaccine schedule, always remembering that parents are the ultimate deciders of what health care their child gets. So we believe in science. In terms of health records, obviously those are personal, private things. However, we know there are cases where parents are denied access to their children’s records unless the child gives approval. And these are on things like gynecologic health in young girls, for instance, or in mental health or in reproductive health. Can you believe it? There are times when parents cannot get access to their children’s records. That is wrong, and I promise you, This Health and Human Services and this administration will be looking into those kind of things when they happen, and they will be taking action when we find those kind of grievances. But that’s unbelievable. Again, we believe in radical transparency. We believe in science. I fully back Secretary Kennedy and President Trump on those things.

SPEAKER 03 : 18:41

I know Secretary Kennedy is working really hard to reduce bureaucracy, and you as a physician know there are times when we as patients have to go through the insurance company, and there’s all of this time, and people are sometimes denied health care because they have to go through all of this bureaucracy. So that’s another encouraging thing that’s coming out of your office. I also applaud what Secretary Kennedy is doing, President Trump, your office, Admiral. Before we go, I know you have to go on to your next appointment. The show is called Restoring Education in America. In your mind, what do we need to do to restore education in America?

SPEAKER 01 : 19:21

I think the most important thing is to remember that when it comes to children and their education, education starts in the home. Mom and dad, the parents have to always know what’s being presented in schools to their children. They have to. We can’t ever have a situation again because we’ve certainly had it. We saw the prior administration for sure in the prior years where parents weren’t even aware sometimes because things were being hidden from them. so to restore confidence in our education parents must always have access to what’s being taught to their children we have to respect the right of parents to some parents to say we believe in educating our children at home if that’s what they choose to do they have the right to do that transparency honesty always remembering the foundation of the family are the mother and the father always for that and we have to respect those parental rights

SPEAKER 03 : 20:10

Well, thank you. And to the listeners, if you want to learn more about the dietary guidelines for Americans, you can go to realfood.gov. Is there a website people can go to to read about the gender dysphoria report?

SPEAKER 01 : 20:22

There is. And if you go on to our HHS website, you can certainly access that. And I encourage people to do that because, again, we have taken amazing steps in this administration. and this Health and Human Services to protect our vulnerable children, to give parents the answers they need, to remember to help them understand that the way to treat these children is with love and with counseling, but it’s not mutilating surgeries and castrating chemicals.

SPEAKER 03 : 20:52

Well, Admiral Christine, thank you so much for your time today. And we’re going to just be watching and cheering from all of the states in America for all the work that you’re doing. So thank you so much.

SPEAKER 01 : 21:03

Priscilla, thank you so much. Please have a blessed day and a blessed evening. Thank you.

SPEAKER 03 : 21:08

You too. Take care. Okay, you guys. Well, we heard it from the Admiral himself. All of these wonderful initiatives that are happening in the federal government. And I would encourage parents to take the time to learn more about what the specific guidelines are. for our diets and lots of real food. I think the government is really encouraging us to Eat more real foods. So let’s talk about what some of the guidelines are. Number one, eat the right amount for you. The calories you need depend on your age, sex, height, weight, and level of physical activity. And pay attention to portion sizes. You know, I always learned that your fist was the size of your stomach. And when you look at how much food you put on a plate, it’s always more, right? When they say your eyes are bigger than your stomach, sometimes that’s true. So taking a look at your portion sizes is critical. Hydration. I know we all need to drink more water. So we’ve got to make sure that we’re drinking still or sparkling water and unsweetened beverages. So that’s one of the guidelines. Prioritizing protein foods at every meal. I love chicken. I love fish. There are certain fish that are better than others like salmon and I love a good cod. I lived in Alaska, so I really love fish. Eating foods like beans, peas, lentils, legumes, nuts, seeds, and soy. Those are great things for us to eat. And swap out eating deep fried foods for baked, broiled, roasted, stir-fried foods. or grilled. I was really surprised to hear about the dairy consumption. I always thought dairy wasn’t really good for you, but in the guidelines, it says when consuming dairy include full fat dairy with no added sugars. Dairy is an excellent source of protein, healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals. And they do actually talk about gut health. Your gut contains trillions of bacteria and other microorganisms called the microbiome. So a healthy diet supports a well-balanced microbiome and healthy digestion. So, ooh, yummy. It says eat fermented foods. I love kimchi. So kimchi… sauerkraut, kefir, miso, and high fiber foods support a diverse microbiome, which can be beneficial to your health. Of course, we know vegetables, everybody has to eat their good vegetables. I personally love broccoli and cauliflower, those types of vegetables, but make sure that you are eating vegetables and it’s good if they are fresh. frozen, dried, or canned vegetables and fruits. Healthy fats, seafood, nuts, seeds. I always take a fish oil every day. And then Focus on whole grains. So prioritizing fiber-rich whole grains significantly reduce the consumption of highly processed refined carbohydrates, such as white bread, ready-to-eat or packaged breakfast options, flour tortillas, oh no, okay, and crackers. So these are things that are not as good as far as whole grains. Let’s see what else. Obviously, reduce refined sugars. Anything that has the word sugar or syrup or ends in O-S-E. High fructose corn syrup, rice syrup, fructose, glucose, dextrose, sucrose, cane sugar. These are all things you need to look for. Maltose, lactose, fruit juices, fruit juice concentrate, honey and molasses. You need to really be careful. Non-nutritive sweeteners include aspartame, sucralose, saccharin, xylitol. Another thing you want to keep in mind is consume less alcohol for better overall health. And then finally, reduce your sodium. And in the manual, it talks about the age groups and the recommendations for sodium in that age group. So this is really a wonderful, wonderful guideline that breaks down the special populations and considerations, including how much vitamin D you should take. So please go to the government website, realfood.gov. It’s put out by the USDA and it gives some really amazing guidelines to parents about how to make sure that your children are growing up healthier. I mean, it’s really encouraging to know that things like food dyes are going to be taken out of foods, that there’s going to be healthier options. They do it in Europe. And it’s about time that we have options. Now, some people would say, well, I don’t believe it’s the government’s role to dictate what groceries are in the grocery store. I understand that. And it’s a valid argument because if we believe in less government, that’s great. At the same time, we have generations of young children who grow up to be very, very sick adults because they go to the store and they don’t have the option of buying a cereal that doesn’t have these toxic ingredients and things that are preserving them on the shelf that really are hurting us. food does need to be accessible that is healthy for us that doesn’t have secret ingredients that will make us sick. And I think that companies that produce food will still be able to sell food, but it will be better for the public so that we don’t have all of these medical conditions. And so that children can go to school and eat a healthier lunch. So anyway, guys, thanks for tuning in to my show today. If you like what you’ve heard, go to my YouTube channel, like and subscribe, and catch me next time. And remember that educating the mind without the heart is no education. So seek wisdom, cultivate virtue, and speak truth.

SPEAKER 02 : 28:06

Thanks for tuning in to Restoring Education in America with Priscilla Ron. Visit PriscillaRon.com to connect or learn how you can sponsor future episodes to keep this message of faith, freedom, and education on the air.