Plain English with Derek Thompson Plain English BEST OF: What’s the Matter With America’s Food?
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Feb 3, 2026 
Julia Belluz, health and nutrition journalist who covers food policy and regulation history, and Kevin Hall, former NIH metabolism researcher who ran randomized trials on ultra-processed diets. They discuss how America’s food environment shapes eating and weight. Conversations cover ultra-processed versus unprocessed trials, food biology and overeating, regulatory loopholes, labeling and upstream policies, and the role of reformulation and tech.
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Environment, Not Willpower, Drives Eating
- Many eating decisions happen beyond conscious will and are driven by biology and environment.
- Julia Belluz says the food environment changed, not our genes, explaining rising diet-related disease.
NIH Inpatient Trials Show Overeating
- Kevin Hall ran randomized inpatient trials comparing ultra-processed and unprocessed diets in a controlled NIH ward.
- He found subjects ate ~500 more calories/day and gained fat on the ultra-processed menu despite matched presented calories.
Biology Integrates Food And Environment
- Food intake is biologically regulated by internal signals that interact with environmental cues.
- Kevin Hall says research still must identify which food attributes disrupt gut–brain signalling and body-weight setpoints.
