Cheerios vs the FDA

Via Tyler Cowen, there is this new article.

So, because health research is being cited, Cheerios are a drug? So what is the rationale for regulation of this product? Patient safety? I fear that denying patients food because clinical research has not been done would seem to be an unwise idea.

I do think that poor regulation of products can lead to harm but there does seem to be a difference of kind here. Nor do I think that merely citing research should be an issue: there should be more careful research into diet and not less.