FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, September 22, 2025

Simply Removing Vaccine Mandates Without Optimal Nutritional Immunity May Do More Harm to the MAHA Movement

By Richard Z. Cheng, M.D., Ph.D., Editor-in-Chief

Florida's recent elimination of school vaccine mandates has polarized the nation. For some, this is a long-awaited victory for personal freedom. For others, it is a reckless gamble that will unleash epidemics of preventable diseases.

From the perspective of Orthomolecular Medicine (OM), canceling mandates is the right step forward for freedom and medical choice. But freedom without foundation is fragility. To truly succeed, removing mandates must be paired with building strong nutritional immunity. Otherwise, we risk not only health setbacks but also undermining the credibility and momentum of the MAHA movement (Make America Healthy Again).

MAHA's Promise - and Its Responsibility

MAHA represents a historic opportunity: to reclaim health from the pharmaceutical establishment and restore it to the people. Rejecting coercive mandates affirms that health decisions belong to individuals and families, not bureaucracies.

But if the movement is perceived only as "anti-vaccine," it risks public backlash. Outbreaks of measles, pertussis, or other diseases in poorly nourished, immune-fragile populations would hand the media and medical establishment their favorite headline: "MAHA endangers lives." This would discredit reform and stall momentum for decades.

Nutritional Immunity: The Stronger Shield

Orthomolecular medicine has long emphasized the true foundation of health: biochemical sufficiency.

• Vitamin D - essential for immune regulation; deficiency is widespread in the U.S.
• Vitamin C - the master antioxidant; critical in infection defense at gram-level intakes.
• Zinc and selenium - trace minerals vital for antiviral immunity.
• Magnesium and omega-3 fats - essential for inflammation control and immune balance.
• Nutrition - a low-carb, nutrient-dense diet stabilizes metabolism and strengthens host defenses.
• Avoidance of ultraprocessed foods - refined carbs, industrial seed oils, and additives weaken immunity, fuel chronic inflammation, and accelerate metabolic fragility.

Without this "nutritional immunity," America is like an army without armor - vulnerable, regardless of vaccine policy.

Freedom + Nutritional Immunity = Resilience

Canceling vaccine mandates is a necessary step to restore freedom. But true freedom is not only the absence of coercion - it is the presence of resilience.

• Children and elderly are safest when both vaccine coercion is ended and nutritional immunity is built.
• Poorer communities benefit most from nutrient sufficiency programs that reduce disease risk.
• The establishment loses power when MAHA is framed as visionary and science-based, not reckless.

The Orthomolecular Path Forward

For MAHA to succeed, it must champion freedom plus resilience:

1. End coercion - Cancel mandates and protect medical freedom as a fundamental right.
2. Launch a national nutritional immunity program - Ensure access to vitamin D, vitamin C, zinc, and nutrient education in schools, workplaces, and nursing homes.
3. Measure what matters - Track population vitamin D levels, nutrient sufficiency, and reductions in chronic disease, not just vaccine uptake.
4. Maintain safeguards - Voluntary vaccines remain accessible, while communities are strengthened through nutrition and lifestyle health.

Conclusion

The real choice is not mandates versus no mandates. The real choice is fragility versus resilience.

Canceling mandates is a victory for freedom - but to secure health and credibility, MAHA must also lead a revolution in nutritional immunity. With optimal nutrition, metabolic health, and true prevention, MAHA can become a transformative force in American healthcare.

Make America Healthy Again must mean more than rejecting coercion. It must mean building strength from within. To truly succeed, MAHA must also mean: Make America Nutritious Again.

About the Author

Richard Z. Cheng, M.D., Ph.D. - Editor-in-Chief, Orthomolecular Medicine News Service

Dr. Cheng is a U.S.-based, NIH-trained, board-certified physician specializing in integrative cancer therapy, orthomolecular medicine, functional & anti-aging medicine. He maintains active practices in both the United States and China.

A Fellow of the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine and a Hall of Fame inductee of the International Society for Orthomolecular Medicine, Dr. Cheng is a leading advocate for nutrition-based, root-cause health strategies. He also serves as an expert reviewer for the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners, and co-founded both the China Low Carb Medicine Alliance and the Society of International Metabolic Oncology.

Dr. Cheng offers online Integrative Orthomolecular Medicine consultation services.
📰 Follow his latest insights on Substack: https://substack.com/@rzchengmd

Orthomolecular Medicine

Orthomolecular medicine uses safe, effective nutritional therapy to fight illness. For more information: http://www.orthomolecular.org

Find a Doctor

To locate an orthomolecular physician near you: http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v06n09.shtml

The peer-reviewed Orthomolecular Medicine News Service is a non-profit and non-commercial informational resource.

Editorial Review Board:

Jennifer L. Aliano, M.S., L.Ac., C.C.N. (USA)
Albert G. B. Amoa, MB.Ch.B, Ph.D. (Ghana)
Seth Ayettey, M.B., Ch.B., Ph.D. (Ghana)
Ilyès Baghli, M.D. (Algeria)
Greg Beattie, Author (Australia)
Barry Breger, M.D. (Canada)
Ian Brighthope, MBBS, FACNEM (Australia)
Gilbert Henri Crussol, D.M.D. (Spain)
Carolyn Dean, M.D., N.D. (USA)
Ian Dettman, Ph.D. (Australia)
Susan R. Downs, M.D., M.P.H. (USA)
Ron Ehrlich, B.D.S. (Australia)
Hugo Galindo, M.D. (Colombia)
Gary S. Goldman, Ph.D. (USA)
William B. Grant, Ph.D. (USA)
Claus Hancke, MD, FACAM (Denmark)
Patrick Holford, BSc (United Kingdom)
Ron Hunninghake, M.D. (USA)
Bo H. Jonsson, M.D., Ph.D. (Sweden)
Dwight Kalita, Ph.D. (USA)
Felix I. D. Konotey-Ahulu, M.D., FRCP (Ghana)
Peter H. Lauda, M.D. (Austria)
Fabrice Leu, N.D., (Switzerland)
Alan Lien, Ph.D. (Taiwan)
Homer Lim, M.D. (Philippines)
Stuart Lindsey, Pharm.D. (USA)
Pedro Gonzalez Lombana, M.D., Ph.D. (Colombia)
Diana MacKay (Gifford-Jones), M.P.P. (Canada)
Victor A. Marcial-Vega, M.D. (Puerto Rico)
Juan Manuel Martinez, M.D. (Colombia)
Mignonne Mary, M.D. (USA)
Dr.Aarti Midha M.D., ABAARM (India)
Jorge R. Miranda-Massari, Pharm.D. (Puerto Rico)
Karin Munsterhjelm-Ahumada, M.D. (Finland)
Sarah Myhill, MB, BS (United Kingdom)
Tahar Naili, M.D. (Algeria)
Zhiwei Ning, M.D., Ph.D. (China)
Zhiyong Peng, M.D. (China)
Pawel Pludowski, M.D. (Poland)
Isabella Akyinbah Quakyi, Ph.D. (Ghana)
Selvam Rengasamy, MBBS, FRCOG (Malaysia)
Jeffrey A. Ruterbusch, D.O. (USA)
Gert E. Schuitemaker, Ph.D. (Netherlands)
Thomas N. Seyfried, Ph.D. (USA)
Han Ping Shi, M.D., Ph.D. (China)
T.E. Gabriel Stewart, M.B.B.CH. (Ireland)
Jagan Nathan Vamanan, M.D. (India)
Dr. Sunil Wimalawansa, M.D., Ph.D. (Sri Lanka)

Andrew W. Saul, Ph.D. (USA), Founding & Former Editor
Richard Cheng, M.D., Ph.D. (USA), Editor-In-Chief
Associate Editor: Robert G. Smith, Ph.D. (USA)
Editor, Japanese Edition: Atsuo Yanagisawa, M.D., Ph.D. (Japan)
Editor, Chinese Edition: Richard Cheng, M.D., Ph.D. (USA)
Editor, Norwegian Edition: Dag Viljen Poleszynski, Ph.D. (Norway)
Editor, Arabic Edition: Moustafa Kamel, R.Ph, P.G.C.M (Egypt)
Editor, Korean Edition: Hyoungjoo Shin, M.D. (South Korea)
Editor, Spanish Edition: Sonia Rita Rial, PhD (Argentina)
Editor, German Edition: Bernhard Welker, M.D. (Germany)
Associate Editor, Arabic Edition: Ayman Kamel, DVM, MBA (Egypt)
Associate Editor, German Edition: Gerhard Dachtler, M.Eng. (Germany)
Assistant Editor: Michael Passwater (USA)
Contributing Editor: Thomas E. Levy, M.D., J.D. (USA)
Contributing Editor: Damien Downing, M.B.B.S., M.R.S.B. (United Kingdom)
Contributing Editor: W. Todd Penberthy, Ph.D. (USA)
Contributing Editor: Michael J. Gonzalez, N.M.D., Ph.D. (Puerto Rico)
Technology Editor: Michael S. Stewart, B.Sc.C.S. (USA)
Associate Technology Editor: Robert C. Kennedy, M.S. (USA)
Legal Consultant: Jason M. Saul, JD (USA)

Comments and media contact: editor@orthomolecular.org OMNS welcomes but is unable to respond to individual reader emails. Reader comments become the property of OMNS and may or may not be used for publication.

To Subscribe at no charge: http://www.orthomolecular.org/subscribe.html

To Unsubscribe from this list: http://www.orthomolecular.org/unsubscribe.html