How FDA became the world’s biggest regulator

Imagine a morning somewhere in the U.S., Frederick David Amberjack wakes up, stumbles into the bathroom, squeezes toothpaste onto a brush, grabs shampoo on the way into the shower, steps out and smears shaving cream onto his morning stubble. Feeling refreshed, he proceeds to the kitchen, pours corn flakes and splashes milk into a bowl, prepares a bottle of formula for the baby, and scoops a generous handful of kibble into a mischievous dachshund’s bowl. Maybe he steps outside for a furtive puff on a vape. Every product Mr. Amberjack has touched since rolling out of bed is regulated by FDA — and none of them are medical products.

That morning routine, and the intersection of FDA with nearly every aspect of life in the U.S., from greens to genes, reflects a century-long expansion of agency oversight. The result is an agency that has a scope much broader than almost all of its peers around the world. ...