" Human "biology was never intended to handle" ultraprocessed foods, former FDA head David Kessler warns
By Bill Whitaker, Sarah Koch
Updated on: February 15, 2026 / 7:20 PM EST / CBS News
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Today, an increasing number of Americans across the political spectrum – from Make America Healthy Again activists to everyday shoppers – are voicing concern about the health impact of ultraprocessed foods – those boxed and wrapped in plastic, ready-to-eat items lining grocery store shelves.
Leading the charge are two men who disagree on pretty much everything else about public health – Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Dr. David Kessler, the former commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
The two men have found common ground over a common culprit: a 67-year-old government classification for substances in our food. It's called GRAS, or generally recognized as safe. Kennedy and Kessler say it has allowed big food companies to use ingredients without a full government safety review and flood the market with ultraprocessed foods that now make up 50% of our calories and 60% of our children's diets.
David Kessler: Over the last 40 years, the United States has been exposed to something that our biology was never intended to handle. Energy-dense, highly palatable, rapidly absorbable, ultraprocessed foods that have altered our metabolism and have resulted in the greatest increase in chronic disease in our history. Type 2 diabetes, pre-diabetes, hypertension, abnormal lipids, fatty liver, heart attacks, stroke, heart failure."

cbsnews.com - Ultraprocessed foods rfk jr and david kessler minutes transcript