With President Donald Trump back in the White House, many of America’s doctors are welcoming the new administration’s greater focus on health and wellness.
The Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) initiative — led by incoming Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — aims to improve nutrition, eliminate toxins, preserve natural habitats and fight the chronic disease epidemic, according to its website.
Several physicians shared with Fox News Digital what they hope and expect to see on the health front during the next four years.
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As Trump takes back the White House, Dr. Marc Siegel, Fox News senior medical analyst, said he looks forward to a greater focus on mental health.
"The mental health epidemic is worsening, including among our teens," he told Fox News Digital — a problem that he said is worsened by "social media overreach."
"The best approach is connectivity, and a return to a time of community and family priorities," said Siegel, who is also a clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Health. "I am hopeful that President Trump will emphasize this."
The doctor is also optimistic that the new administration will focus on pandemic preparedness, based on lessons learned from COVID-19.
In particular, Siegel said he hopes to see increased surveillance, advances in biotechnology and the use of artificial intelligence to track threats.
Personalized medicine will also be a focus in Trump’s White House, Siegel predicted, with an increased use of wearables.
"We could save hundreds of billions of dollars with DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) and HHS addressing health care rather than sick care," Siegel said.
"The focus will be on wellness, lifestyle, exercise and diet," he added, along with a "war on ultraprocessed foods."
Dr. Ken Berry, a family physician and diabetes specialist in Tennessee, shared with Fox News Digital that he hopes Trump’s presidency will be a "new golden age for American health."
"For too long, the practice of medicine has been polluted by corporate profits, questionable research, silenced physicians and misleading statements to the public," said Berry, who helps patients overcome obesity, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.
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"I hope to see a thoughtful re-evaluation of all existing research, the restoration of an unhindered doctor-patient relationship, the cessation of direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertising, and an end to Big Food's misleading health claims," Berry went on.
The doctor also encourages a "vigorous effort" to educate Americans on genuinely healthy food and lifestyle choices, along with a "renewed cultural appreciation for the idea that being healthy and happy is not only achievable, but also aspirational."
Dr. Robert Lufkin, a California physician who is also a medical professor at UCLA and USC, applauded the new administration’s goal to address the rise in chronic diseases, including a focus on lifestyle factors and exposure to chemicals.
"I am excited about this administration's possible health actions in several areas," he shared with Fox News Digital.
In particular, Lufkin said the new administration aims to "prioritize research into environmental triggers such as pesticides, industrial pollutants and food additives."
"They also plan to advocate for transparency in corporate practices and stricter regulation of industries contributing to environmental degradation," he added.
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Lufkin also highlighted MAHA’s goal to improve food safety and nutrition and to reduce exposure to unhealthy substances.
"This could be done by regulating harmful ingredients like artificial sweeteners, high-fructose corn syrup and chemical additives in processed foods," he said.
Lufkin also supports the administration's goal to restrict unhealthy foods for public assistance programs and to encourage local and sustainable farming.
Shifting the health care system’s focus from treatment to prevention is another important part of MAHA's agenda, the doctor noted.
This could involve expanding alternative and holistic therapies and educating the public on the importance of lifestyle changes, including exercise, proper nutrition and stress management, he noted.
"Another goal is to minimize reliance on pharmaceuticals and encourage the use of natural treatments and non-drug interventions for common conditions," Lufkin said.
The doctor also applauded the new administration’s plans to combat corporate influence in health care, and to "examine the pharmaceutical and chemical industries’ values of prioritizing profits over public health."
Dr. Shana Johnson, a physical medicine and rehabilitation physician in Scottsdale, Arizona, said she hopes the Trump administration continues to build on its policy of increasing price transparency for clinics, hospitals, health insurers and pharmaceutical companies.
"Hidden prices, manipulated many times over, have allowed Americans to be overcharged and exploited for profit, whether it's generic medications being marked up by 1,000% or an emergency room visit for dehydration costing $5,000," she told Fox News Digital.
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In many cases, she noted, prices are "essentially hidden and manipulated," which means the consumer has no idea of the cost basis or true value of a service.
"I am seeing more price manipulation to make it look like health insurance is paying for services, when they are actually upcharging the service," she said.
"For example, if I pay the cash price for a mammogram, it is less expensive than if I use my health insurance," Johnson went on. "This is true for generic drugs as well."
The Trump administration has a "great opportunity" to address the growing mental health crisis in America, according to Jonathan Alpert, a psychotherapist in Manhattan and Washington, D.C.
"I truly believe the Trump administration has an opportunity and responsibility to address mental health in a way that helps people build resilience, not just catering to political or cultural trends," he told Fox News Digital.
One of Alpert’s big concerns, he shared, is that the "woke" culture may be inadvertently contributing to a mental health crisis.
"While it’s important to validate emotions and acknowledge systemic challenges, there’s a growing trend of overpathologizing normal human struggles and promoting victimhood as an identity," Alpert said.
Rather than "overemphasizing individual traumas or identity-based grievances," Alpert calls for a focus on accountability and personal growth.
"We need policies that foster self-reliance and mental toughness while still offering support for those who genuinely struggle," he said.
In Trump’s administration, Alpert said he hopes to see a commitment to mental health initiatives that foster both support and personal responsibility.
"This includes improving access to therapy, but also addressing how social media, divisive rhetoric and identity politics are affecting young people’s sense of self-worth and mental health," he said.
"There’s a real danger in allowing cultural narratives to dictate how we approach mental health, turning it into a political battleground instead of a space for growth."
"Not every challenge is trauma, not every disagreement is harmful and not every failure stems from systemic oppression," Alpert went on.
Rather than encouraging victimhood, therapy should help people take ownership of their lives, develop resilience and thrive despite adversity, according to the psychotherapist.
As Donald Trump assumes the presidency, the U.S. looks to his administration with hopes for "substantial improvements in public health," according to Dr. Brett Osborn, a Florida neurosurgeon and longevity expert.
"A key expectation is a commitment to reforming health care policy to make it more accessible and affordable," he told Fox News Digital.
"This could involve fostering competition in the health care market (thereby driving insurance premiums down), enhancing price transparency at the hospital level, and expanding coverage options to ensure that families across all income levels receive adequate care."
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Osborn also hopes that the administration will tackle obesity by incentivizing healthier food options, more explicit nutritional labeling, and support for physical activity initiatives at schools.
"Furthermore, addressing food supplies in underserved areas could promote better access to fresh, nutrient-rich foods, reducing diet-related illnesses such as diabetes and heart disease," he added.
Another expectation is an emphasis on preventive instead of reactive care, according to Osborn.
"Encouraging regular health screenings to identify risk factors for disease and supporting wellness education campaigns could significantly reduce the burden of preventable diseases," he said.
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Ultimately, Osborn went on, the new administration has the potential to prioritize health — "not just as a matter of policy, but as a cornerstone of national prosperity."
"Without health on an individual and national scale, the nation will continue to falter," the doctor said.
"However, as President Trump said during his inauguration speech, ‘From this moment on, America’s decline is over.’"
from Health News Today on Fox News https://ift.tt/3JMjFRA
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