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From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.<\/p>\n
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.<\/p>\n
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.<\/p>\n
Your support makes all the difference.<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nRead more<\/span><\/svg><\/span><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nWith his sights set on making American food healthier, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has zeroed in on a beloved national beverage \u2014 a cup of sugary iced coffee. <\/p>\n
The \u201cMake America Healthy Again\u201d advocate has vowed to improve American diets and called out popular coffee chains Dunkin\u2019 and Starbucks for their sugary drinks during a food-focused event in Austin, Texas, last week, The Boston Globe<\/em> reported. <\/p>\n\u201cWe\u2019re going to ask Dunkin\u2019 Donuts and Starbucks, \u2018Show us the safety data that show that it\u2019s OK for a teenage girl to drink an iced coffee with 115 grams of sugar in it,\u2019\u201d Kennedy said. \u201cI don\u2019t think they\u2019re gonna be able to do it.\u201d <\/p>\n
Flavored iced coffees at Dunkin\u2019 can have between 18 and 67 grams of sugar, while the chain\u2019s frozen beverages can range from 100 to 180 grams.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, adding a flavored syrup to a Starbucks iced coffee adds approximately 20 grams of sugar to the drink. The chain\u2019s frozen offering, known as the frappuccino, can have between approximately 40 and 80 grams of sugar. <\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is asking Dunkin\u2019 and Starbucks to prove its iced coffee is healthy for teens to drink (Getty Images)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nIt was not immediately clear whether the Trump administration planned to restrict sugary beverages at Dunkin\u2019, Starbucks, and similar chains. The Independent <\/em>has contacted Dunkin\u2019, Starbucks and the Health and Human Services Department for more information. <\/p>\nNews of the HHS secretary\u2019s potential plans was first reported by the Globe<\/em>, and drew intense anger from many of its Dunkin\u2019 obsessed readers. <\/p>\n\u201cThem\u2019s fighting words, especially in Massachusetts,\u201d one social media user commented under the article on Facebook. <\/p>\n
Another chimed in, \u201cMy dunks is safer than his cocaine and tanning bed, but ok,\u201d along with three laughing-crying emojis. \u201cThis guy,\u201d the user added. <\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Flavored iced coffee from Dunkin\u2019 can have up to 67 grams of sugar (Dunkin’)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Starbucks iced coffees have about 20 grams of sugar, meanwhile its frozen offerings can have up to 80 (Starbucks)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nAnother Facebook user noted, \u201cThis is coming from the guy who went swimming in a bacteria-filled river before checking if it was \u2018safe.\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n
Even Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey reacted to Kennedy\u2019s plan to potentially alter Dunkin\u2019 iced coffee. She shared an edited version of the \u201cCome and Take it\u201d flag, which represents Texas pride. Her version, however, featured a Dunkin\u2019 iced coffee underneath the star. <\/p>\n
Inspired by their governor, several other X users shared punny drawings of snakes wrapped around Dunkin\u2019 iced coffee that said \u201cDonut Tread on Me,\u201d referencing the historic \u201cDon\u2019t Tread on Me\u201d flag. <\/p>\n
Kennedy has pushed to reform the food ingredient approval system known as \u201cGenerally Recognized As Safe.\u201d The GRAS category was originally meant for common ingredients like vinegar and salt, but has come to include thousands of other ingredients over time \u2014 including those commonly found in ultraprocessed foods. <\/p>\n
A proposed action to tighten the approval system is under review by the White House, according to the report. <\/p>\n
Since taking office, Kennedy has also waged an aggressive campaign against ultra-processed foods, which he says are poisoning Americans<\/p>\n
During his confirmation hearing, Kennedy told lawmakers that food makers have been allowed to \u201cmass poison American children.\u201d Several months later, in May, he said: \u201cIt’s common sense that ultra-processed, nutrient-poor food contributes to chronic disease.\u201d<\/p>\n
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open image in gallery<\/span><\/button><\/p>\n<\/div>Kennedy has gone after ultra-processed foods since taking office last year (Getty)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nKennedy is now looking to tighten federal rules to ensure food makers face greater scrutiny when they change their recipes. He has also prompted states, including Oklahoma, Louisiana and Texas, to enact their own regulations.<\/p>\n
As part of his \u201cTake Back Your Health\u201d Tour, Kennedy has traveled across America to promote parts of his MAHA agenda, namely, urging Americans to eat more \u201creal\u201d food and less processed ingredients.<\/p>\n
Kennedy has spent more time talking about healthy foods than his controversial vaccine policies in recent months, though administration officials told the Washington Post<\/em> that \u201cvaccines are not popular issues to talk about.\u201d <\/p>\nThe White House dismissed that there was any official change in messaging, saying its agenda had \u201cmass appeal.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it’s investigating the financials of Elon Musk’s pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, ‘The A Word’, which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference. Read more With his sights set on making American food healthier, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has zeroed in on a beloved national beverage \u2014 a cup of sugary iced coffee. The \u201cMake America Healthy Again\u201d advocate has vowed to improve American diets and called out popular coffee chains Dunkin\u2019 and Starbucks for their sugary drinks during a food-focused event in Austin, Texas, last week, The Boston Globe reported. \u201cWe\u2019re going to ask Dunkin\u2019 Donuts and Starbucks, \u2018Show us the safety data that show that it\u2019s OK for a teenage girl to drink an iced coffee with 115 grams of sugar in it,\u2019\u201d Kennedy said. \u201cI don\u2019t think they\u2019re gonna be able to do it.\u201d Flavored iced coffees at Dunkin\u2019 can have between 18 and 67 grams of sugar, while the chain\u2019s frozen beverages can range from 100 to 180 grams. Meanwhile, adding a flavored syrup to a Starbucks iced coffee adds approximately 20 grams of sugar to the drink. The chain\u2019s frozen offering, known as the frappuccino, can have between approximately 40 and 80 grams of …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12857,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12856"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12856"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12856\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12857"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12856"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12856"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12856"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}