Megan Guzman, Opinions Editor  

For the past few months, influencers touting the benefits of beef tallow as the best, most natural moisturizer have been clogging social media feeds. Videos of women rubbing the beef fat on their skin have garnered millions of views, with influencers promoting the substance as an all-natural alternative to chemical-laden skin care products that can treat acne and moisturize the skin. But what exactly is beef tallow, and how does it relate to RFK Jr.’s Make American Healthy Again movement? 

Beef tallow is rendered fat (aka the fat leftover after cooking beef). Proponents of beef tallow argue that it is a healthier alternative to other oils for cooking and skin care. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his followers often cite beef tallow as a better option for frying foods rather than oils derived from seeds, like canola oil or sunflower oil. This push for animal fats as a consumable oil stands in stark contrast to years of medical professionals advocating for the limitation of saturated fats (like animal fats) in favor of unsaturated fats (like olive oil, canola oil, or seed oils).  

RFK Jr., with his push to “Make America Healthy Again,” sees seed oils as a product responsible for “driving” the obesity epidemic. He argues this because after many fast-food restaurants switched to frying their food in seed oils rather than animal fats in the 1990s, the number of Americans classified as overweight or obese skyrocketed. However, RFK Jr. fails to acknowledge the shift in how obesity was classified, which changed the guidelines on how one was considered overweight and obese, which made millions of Americans classified as overweight or obese overnight. 

MAHA advocates villainize seed oils, are skeptical of vaccinations, and want to eliminate fortifying breakfast cereals because they can’t pronounce riboflavin. Using beef tallow and other animal fats as moisturizers, they promote the benefits of chemical-free skin care without recognizing that beef tallow is a chemical and that everything “natural” product they consume, from lettuce to raw beef, contains chemicals. In fact, our body relies on chemicals to produce energy and continue functioning.  

Additionally, as RFK Jr. begins working as the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, his skepticism of vaccines and promotion of dietary supplementation over pharmaceuticals is seeping into his policy positions. MAHA followers advocate for individual solutions to systemic issues. Changing the oil you cook with cannot fix the healthcare system in this country, which is the leading cause of bankruptcy in the U.S. Taking unregulated supplements will not make the air we breathe cleaner. Using beef tallow as moisturizer will not make the communities we live in more walkable.  

Lastly, beef tallow moisturizers have not been rigorously tested by dermatologists, but one review of the literature did not find any benefits of using beef tallow on the skin. Beef tallow is also comedogenic, which means it can clog pores and worsen acne. Just because a product is “natural” does not mean it doesn’t have a chemical makeup and does not mean that it will automatically be good for your skin. 

Anecdotally, beef tallow moisturizers seem to work for some people’s skin and can irritate others. When choosing skin care products, be attentive to the language influencers and companies use, like “all- natural”—this language is not regulated and can mean anything. When scrolling social media, be skeptical of people selling you simple solutions for complicated problems. Remember that health rarely relies on the individual rather than the community.