[ad_1]
New research suggests that replacing red meat and dairy products with beans, chicken and vegetables is not only healthier but also more environmentally friendly.
But scientists say you do not have to become vegan to be green, you can sometimes have a steak or a piece of blue cheese and do your part.
A simple moderate abandonment of red meat, diaries and high-calorie foods helps save the planet and our health.
The study looked at the carbon footprint of what more than 16,000 Americans ate each day comparing foods to the amount of greenhouse gas emissions.
He was the first to compare the impact on climate and nutritional value of American diets using real data on what Americans say they eat.
Even a slight change from red meat, diaries and high-calorie foods is helping save the planet and our health, say scientists at Tulane University.
Professor Diego Rose, from Tulane University, said: "People whose diets reduced the carbon footprint were consuming less red meat and dairy products – which contribute to a greater share of greenhouse gas emissions and are high in saturated fats – and consume healthier foods, such as poultry, whole grains, and vegetable proteins. "
He added that they hoped this discovery would help the public and policy makers recognize that improving the quality of food could also help the environment.
Dr. Rose said, "We can have both. We can have healthier diets and reduce our food-related emissions.
"And that does not require the extreme complete elimination of foods.
"For example, if we reduce the amount of red meat in our diet and replace it with other protein foods such as chicken, eggs or beans, we could reduce our carbon footprint and improve our health at the same time. . "
Research Specialist at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor's Martin Heller, added, "The good news is that there are win-win solutions with healthier diets for the planet and for men.
"A significant reduction in food-related emissions does not require a complete elimination of food: a moderate change from red meat to beans, eggs or chicken can lead to significant improvements both about the health and carbon footprint of our diet.
The study created a comprehensive database of greenhouse gas emissions related to food production and linked it to a large federal survey that asked people what they ate over a period of time. 24 hours.
The researchers ranked diets by the amount of greenhouse gas emissions per 1,000 calories consumed and divided them into five equal groups.
They then badessed the nutritional value of the foods consumed in each diet using the US indicator of healthy eating, a federal measure of food quality, and compared the groups. the weakest to the most important on this measure and others.
Overall, lower-impact group diets were healthier, but not for all measures.
However, these diets also contained a greater number of unhealthy products, namely added sugars and refined cereals.
They also had a lower amount of important nutrients, such as iron, calcium and vitamin D, probably due to decreased consumption of meat and dairy products.
Dr. Rose added that it was because diets are complex and contain many ingredients that all affect nutritional quality and environmental impacts.
He said: "This explains the nuanced relationship observed between these results".
The group's diets with the greatest impact represented five times the emissions of those in the group with the lowest impact.
Higher impact diets had larger amounts of meat such as beef, veal, pork and game, dairy and solid fats per 1,000 calories than low impact diets.
Overall, high – impact diets were more concentrated in total protein and animal protein foods.
An earlier study of researchers published last year had revealed that 20% of Americans were responsible for nearly half of the US-related greenhouse gas emissions.
The study was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Source link
