HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Suggests Measles May Be Result Of Poor Nutrition, Alarming Disease Experts

by Angie SchlagerMarch 11, 2025, 8:40 pmHomepage Slider, News >

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. discussed the spread of measles cases in the U.S. during a recent exclusive interview with Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Health and Fox News’ senior medical analyst. During the interview, Kennedy noted that malnourishment may be a factor in Texas’s over 200 reported cases.

“If you are healthy, it’s almost impossible for you to be killed by an infectious disease, in modern times — because we have nutrition and access to medicines,” Kennedy said. “What we need is good science on all of these things so that people can make rational choices,” he added.

Kennedy told Siegel that nutrition is “critical” for overall disease prevention. “The best thing Americans can do is to keep themselves healthy,” he said. “It is very, very difficult for measles to kill a healthy, well-nourished person. We need to eat good foods. We need whole foods. We need to get plenty of exercise.”

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There is data to show that severely malnourished children in poor countries often suffer worse outcomes from measles. Still, no credible evidence exists that poor eating habits and exercise routines make a child more prone to measles complications.

Dr. Jacob Glanville, CEO of biotech company Centivax, told Fox Digital that lack of quality medical care in many areas of the developing world also contributes to disease severity. He said, “While better nutrition is important for American children, it’s unlikely to make a difference when it comes to measles infection or severity — 90% of well-fed but unvaccinated American children exposed to measles will become infected, around 20% of those children will be hospitalized, and 0.1-1% of those children will die.”

Despite Kennedy’s claims, experts insist that vaccination remains the most effective defense against measles. However, they highlight the significant role of nutritional deficiencies, like vitamin A, which is more prominent in serious cases in countries outside the U.S. In the U.S., vitamin A supplementation is not a cure or a preventative measure and should only be considered after talking to a doctor.

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recently released online statements warning parents not to rely on vitamin A for measles prevention and that too much vitamin A can be dangerous for children. The AAP emphasizes that “measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccination remains the most important tool for preventing measles.”