What would happen if you ate like Donald Trump every day?

Donald Trump's eating habits have been talked about for years, almost as much as his politics. From a red button on the Resolute Desk to a reported dinner order that could feed a small family, his diet has become something of a public curiosity. But beyond the headlines lies a genuinely interesting question: what would actually happen to an ordinary person who tried to eat and live the way he reportedly does?

The famous Diet Coke button

Trump's love of Diet Coke is legendary. Back in 2017, the New York Times reported that he was drinking around 12 cans a day. That is close to four and a half litres of fizzy drink, every single day.

To make getting his fix easier, Trump is said to have had a small red button fitted on his desk in the Oval Office. One press, and a staff member would appear with a fresh can, often served on a tray.

Fast food on repeat

Diet Coke was only part of the story. People who worked closely with Trump have said his usual food choices came down to four things: McDonald's, KFC, pizza and Diet Coke. His regular McDonald's order is said to include a Quarter Pounder with extra ketchup, no pickles, and an apple pie on the side.

One widely shared account of his evening meal is even bigger. Two Big Macs, two Filet-O-Fish sandwiches and a chocolate malt shake, adding up to roughly 2,400 calories in one sitting. That is close to what many adults are told to eat across an entire day, all in a single meal.

Sweets and snacks were also part of the routine. At formal dinners, Trump reportedly got two scoops of ice cream while other guests received just one. His plane is said to have been kept stocked with cookies like Oreos, Vienna Fingers and various chips.

Steak well done, no vegetables

Then there is the steak. Reports say Trump likes his cooked well done and topped with ketchup, a combination that would horrify most chefs, since cooking a good steak for that long usually ruins its texture and flavour. A former butler at his Mar-a-Lago estate has said Trump preferred it served on its own, without vegetables or any fancy extras.

Getting him to eat vegetables at all apparently took some creativity. According to reports, cooks would blend cauliflower into his mashed potatoes so he would eat it without realising.

What he avoids

Here's where things get more complicated. Trump does not drink alcohol at all, and he says he avoids coffee and cigarettes too. He has also said he only sleeps around four to five hours a night, and puts his energy down to willpower rather than any fitness plan or careful eating.

So the full picture looks like this: heavy on processed food and sugary drinks, very light on vegetables, barely any sleep, and little formal exercise, but no alcohol, coffee or smoking at all. It is not a diet that fits neatly into the usual idea of "healthy" or "unhealthy". It is a strange mix of both.

What his own doctors have said

This is where things get interesting, because Trump's official health checks give us real numbers to work with, rather than just stories.

In April 2025, at 78 years old, he weighed 224 pounds, down from 244 pounds during a check-up back in 2020. His doctor called him fully fit for the job. His BMI, a rough measure of weight compared to height, had dropped enough to move him out of the "obese" category and into "overweight".

That progress did not last. By his next check-up in May 2026, his weight had gone back up to 238 pounds, a jump of 14 pounds in just over a year. His BMI climbed to 29.7, only just below the cut-off point doctors use for obesity. His doctor still described him as being in excellent health overall, but also said he had been advised to eat better, move more, and keep working on losing weight.

The reports also show he takes medication to manage his cholesterol, and that he has a condition called chronic venous insufficiency, which causes blood to pool in the legs and is fairly common in older adults. In short: his numbers have gone up and down over time, and his cholesterol needs help from medicine to stay under control.

Would this diet be safe for a normal person?

This is the part worth thinking about carefully, because the honest answer is no, not really, not over the long run.

Twelve cans a day is a huge amount of anything. Each can has roughly 40 to 45 milligrams of caffeine, so 12 cans adds up to well over 500 milligrams a day.

Most health experts say adults should stay under 400 milligrams. Go beyond that regularly and you risk a racing heart, anxiety, poor sleep and higher blood pressure. There is also the sheer amount of liquid and artificial sweetener involved, which some research links to weaker bones and confused hunger signals over time. The sweetener itself, aspartame, is still debated. In 2023, the World Health Organization's cancer research body labelled it as "possibly" linked to cancer, while food safety regulators said it remains safe within normal daily limits. 

Meals built around burgers, fried fish sandwiches and pastries are heavy on saturated fat, salt and refined carbs, and light on almost everything the body actually needs, like fibre and vitamins. Having this kind of meal now and then will not hurt anyone. Eating this way as a daily habit is a different story. It is strongly linked to weight gain, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and a greater chance of developing type 2 diabetes or heart disease, exactly the kind of issues showing up in Trump's own medical reports.

The well done steak is less dangerous and more about taste, though very high heat cooking for a long time can create compounds that some studies link to a higher cancer risk. The effect is stronger with charring and prolonged cooking than with a steak cooked medium or rare.

Barely any vegetables might be the most overlooked risk of all. Vegetables and fibre help keep blood sugar steady, support a healthy gut and protect the heart. Skipping them day after day, rather than any single unhealthy meal, is often what causes the most damage over the years.

Four to five hours of sleep a night is far below the seven to nine hours doctors usually recommend. Long term, this is linked to weight gain, a weaker immune system and greater risk of heart problems. Add very little regular exercise, and the body loses two of its best natural defences against a poor diet.

Staying away from alcohol and cigarettes completely is genuinely good for health. These are two of the biggest risk factors for cancer, liver disease and heart disease, so avoiding them likely balances out some of the damage from the rest of his diet. Not all of it, but some.

Trump's own doctors have not hidden the truth. His weight has swung between overweight and obese, his cholesterol needs medication to manage, and he has repeatedly been told to eat better, move more and lose weight. None of that is unusual for a man his age, but it does show that this lifestyle continues despite medical advice, not because doctors have given it a pass.

For anyone without a personal chef, a medical team on call and regular health monitoring, trying to copy this lifestyle would come with real risks. Weight gain, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, and a higher chance of heart disease and diabetes over time.

(Disclaimer:This article is for general information only and is not medical advice. Always consult a health expert before making new changes)