US Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr has offered a candid glimpse into President Donald Trump’s eating habits, saying his boss relies heavily on junk food, particularly while travelling, largely for security reasons.
Speaking on a podcast hosted by Katie Miller, Kennedy said Trump’s diet on the road is dominated by fast food, sweets and Diet Coke, choices he attributed to both safety concerns and the president’s trust in major food brands. Miller is the wife of Trump’s deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller.
The podcast episode, released on Tuesday (US time), featured Kennedy describing Trump’s travel routine in unusually blunt terms. “If you travel with him, you get this idea that he’s just pumping himself full of poison all day long and you don’t know how he’s walking around, much less being the most energetic person, you know, any of us have ever met,” Kennedy said.
According to Kennedy, Trump’s preference for fast food stems in part from a desire to avoid foodborne illness while moving between states and countries. “He doesn’t want to get sick when he’s on the road,” Kennedy explained, adding that the president tends to trust the consistency of large, well-known companies.
“The interesting thing about the president is that he eats really bad food, which is McDonald’s, and, you know, candy and Diet Coke,” Kennedy said. “He drinks the Diet Coke at all times. I don’t know how he’s alive, but he is.”
Despite the criticism of Trump’s travel diet, Kennedy was quick to stress that the president’s eating habits improve significantly when he is at home. He said Trump generally eats “pretty good food” when staying at his Mar-a-Lago residence or at the White House.
Kennedy also pushed back against any suggestion that Trump’s fondness for junk food has harmed his overall wellbeing. He described the president as being in “incredible health” and possessing “the constitution of a deity,” noting Trump’s high energy levels and demanding schedule.
The remarks have drawn attention not only for their frank tone but also for highlighting the tension between Trump’s personal habits and Kennedy’s own long-standing advocacy for healthier lifestyles and food reform.
