The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, a D.C. based nonprofit research and advocacy group, recently called for the USDA to retract the 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), which were published on Dec. 29. The organization, well-known for supporting plant-based diets on the merit of health benefits, favors dietary recommendations which look more favorably upon sourcing protein from plants, as well as reducing dairy. The organization cited a number of studies linking the consumption of animal products to an increased cancer risk. Further, they posit that the DGA is racially biased in its recommendations on dairy, citing studies which conclude that links between dairy consumption and prostate cancer risk are disparately high among Black Americans. The organization previously voiced these concerns during the public comment period held by the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee.  
 
“Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue released the Guidelines too hastily. They need to be pulled back and redrafted,” Susan Levin, MS, RD, CSSD, director of nutrition education for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, said. “The Guidelines maintain a racially tinged promotion of dairy products, which are far less healthful than other calcium sources and have been shown to increase the risk of prostate and breast cancer, both of which are particularly deadly in the Black community, as well as an inappropriate emphasis on meat, rather than healthier foods.”
 
The outlook of certain types of cancers are especially grim for Black Americans, according to studies cited by the Physicians Committee, including one study which suggests breast cancer death rates are 40% higher in Black women compared with White women, and that Black men are more likely to get prostate cancer than other men and twice as likely than other men to die from prostate cancer.
 
Three servings of dairy per day, which the new Guidelines continue to recommend, can increase breast cancer risk by up to 80% and risk of death from prostate cancer by 141%, the Physicians Committee argued.
 
Synnove Knutsen, the lead author of a study which concluded that drinking as little as one cup of milk per day could increase breast cancer rates by 50%, reportedly told the Physicians Committee that “people should view that recommendation with caution.”
 
Two other studies which the Physicians Committee included in their rebuttal to the new DGA include one 2015 meta-analysis which linked high intakes of dairy products including whole and low-fat milk and cheese to an increased prostate cancer risk, and another study which found that those who consumed three or more servings of dairy products daily had a 141% increased risk of fatal prostate cancer compared to those who consumed less than one serving. The mortality risk in either of the two studies was not affected by the fat content of the dairy products consumed, the organization said.
 
The Protein Pedestal
The Physicians Committee shared another qualm with the DGA related to meat consumption – the group is of the position that “Protein” should no longer be considered an independent food group, as it is a nutrient abundantly available in plenty of plant-based food sources besides meat. This, they argue, places a false importance on meat as a source of protein, when there are other protein sources with lower concentrations of fat and cholesterol. Despite this, the DGA lists meat as a favored source of protein. The recommended dietary pattern they for proteins incorporates three protein subgroups, with 26 ounces of meats/poultry/eggs, 8 ounces of seafood, and 5 ounces of nuts, seeds, and soy products per week, for example.
 
The organization concluded by breaking down three primary components of the DGA that they would have liked to see upon its recent publication. These are: “Delete dairy promotions, since dairy products increase cancer risk, while nondairy calcium sources help prevent cancer”; “Avoid equating ‘protein with meat, as there are abundant sources of protein without meat’s fat and cholesterol”; and “Increase emphasis on plant-based foods, which are associated with reduced risk of obesity, cancer, and cardiovascular disease.”