U.S. Diet Guidelines Sidestep Scientific Advice to Cut Sugar and Alcohol

Rejecting the advice of its scientific advisers, the federal government has released new dietary recommendations that sound a familiar nutritional refrain, advising Americans to “make every bite count” while dismissing expert recommendations to sharply reduce consumption of sugar and alcoholic beverages.

The “Dietary Guidelines for Americans” are updated every five years, and the latest iteration arrived on Tuesday, 10 months into a pandemic that has posed a historic health threat to Americans. Confined to their homes, even those who have dodged the coronavirus itself are drinking more and gaining weight,...