Whole Foods CEO John Mackey claimed the solution to America’s health care problem is to “change the way people eat.”
Mackey talked about health and dieting during an interview with Freakonomics Radio, according to an article published Tuesday by People magazine.
Whole Foods CEO John Mackey: The ‘best solution’ is to not need health care and for Americans to change how they eat and live (via @CNBCMakeIt) https://t.co/TjSGbmeitF
— CNBC (@CNBC) January 4, 2021
“I mean, honestly, we talk about health care,” he told host Stephen J. Dubner, the outlet reported. “The best solution is not to need health care.”
“The best solution is to change the way people eat, the way they live, the lifestyle, and diet.” he added according to People. “There’s no reason why people shouldn’t be healthy and have a longer health span. A bunch of drugs is not going to solve the problem.”
Mackey claimed 71% of Americans are overweight and 42.5% are obese during the interview, according to People magazine. (RELATED: Whole Foods CEO John Mackey Praises Capitalism, Calls Socialism ‘Trickle-Up Poverty’)
“Clearly, we’re making bad choices in the way we eat,” he continued. “It’s not a sustainable path. And so, I’m calling it out.”
Mackey founded Whole Foods in 1980 alongside three others and has shared his thoughts on health care in the past. Mackey even advocated against the Affordable Care Act in an article published in the Wall Street Journal in 2009.
“Rather than increase government spending and control, we need to address the root causes of poor health,” Mackey wrote in the editorial. “This begins with the realization that every American adult is responsible for his or her own health.”