President Donald Trump has shared a surprising claim that he could potentially live to 200 years old if he gave up his fondness for junk food. At 79 years old, Trump made these remarks during a Friday event celebrating the U.S. Naval Academy football team, while addressing questions about his health.
The president mentioned his former White House doctor, Ronny Jackson, who is now a Republican congressman from Texas. Trump stated that Jackson had told him he was “by far” the healthiest of the last three American presidents. “He took a lot of heat for this,” Trump said of Jackson. “They said, ‘Who is the healthiest of the three?’ He said, ‘President Donald J Trump by far. If he didn’t eat junk food, he’d live to 200 years old.’ And I love this guy.”
This list includes former President Barack Obama, who maintained a weight of around 180 pounds during his presidency and regularly played basketball and golf—activities he shares with Trump. Trump’s most recent publicly revealed weight was 225 pounds, and his primary activity remains golfing. The president is also well-known for his love of McDonald’s, even once attempting to show his relatability to everyday Americans by “working” a drive-thru at one of the restaurants.
Despite Jackson’s positive medical assessments, Trump’s hands have appeared bruised on several occasions, including when he signed an executive order. Both his hands and neck have shown signs of bruising in recent months. The White House has attributed the hand bruises to the numerous handshakes the president has engaged in.
As the soon-to-be 80-year-old president, Trump has faced scrutiny over his health due to his age. However, he has consistently maintained that he is in good health and has released letters from doctors confirming it, despite some questionable habits.
Jackson first joined the White House Medical Unit in 2006 and served as a doctor for Obama between 2013 and 2018. During Trump’s first term, the president nominated Jackson to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Trump’s decision to elevate Jackson led to renewed attention on past controversies surrounding the doctor. Jackson had been accused of drinking on the job, overprescribing opioids, and creating a hostile work environment by nearly two dozen current and former White House medical staff.
Jackson eventually withdrew his nomination but did not admit to any of the allegations against him. “Going into this process, I expected tough questions about how to best care for our veterans, but I did not expect to have to dignify baseless and anonymous attacks on my character and integrity,” he said at the time.
Jackson has consistently provided Trump with positive health evaluations. In 2018, he told reporters that Trump’s cardiac health was “excellent” and emphasized that the president had good genes. “He has incredible genes, I just assume,” Jackson said, according to CNN.
The doctor’s repeated praise likely influenced Trump to mention him during the event on Friday. Trump was presenting the U.S. Naval Academy football team with the Commander-in-Chief Trophy and also used the opportunity to sign an executive order designating the second Saturday in December as the official and exclusive day for the annual Army-Navy football game.
“Not Ohio State against Notre Dame. Not LSU against Alabama. Nobody is going to play,” he said during the event.
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