As you may already know, some diets are more sustainable than others. In fact, some of the foods we eat every day have a much more significant impact than you would expect. Animal agriculture is the leading cause of water use, climate change, deforestation, and species extinction. In fact, it takes 425 gallons of water to produce 1/4 lb of beef, enough to fill 10 baths**.
Not all diets are created equally when it comes to the environment or your health. Some options worth considering are vegan, vegetarian, flexitarian, and Mediterranean/pescatarian. These are all healthier options to the more common meat-heavy diet consumed by most Americans. The most harmful food you consume every day is red meat. Consuming diets high in meat (especially red meat) triples your risk of heart disease. Chemicals used in meat production can increase your risk of cancer. Meat and animal byproducts can also increase inflammation in your body; leading to acne, pain, arthritis, and ailments such as carpal tunnel syndrome.
The vegan diet is the most restrictive of the above diets. People who eat a vegan diet do not consume any animals or animal byproducts. It is a more natural diet because many vegans are forced to do more from-scratch cooking because finding sauces and seasonings without dairy and eggs can be complicated. When shopping make sure you check labels to verify that the products you are looking for do not contain meat, eggs, dairy, or gelatin (all of which would be listed in bold under the ingredients list as common allergens). Some companies will label their products as Vegan, while others do not place this label on their products. The vegan diet is the most environmentally sustainable diet, and the carbon footprint of your food is even lower if you purchase and consume locally grown foods.
The vegetarian diet is similar to the vegan diet, but less strict. Vegetarians eat eggs and diary products as well as other animal byproducts. However, vegetarians do not consume meat or fish. This diet is the second most environmentally sustainable because of the lack of meat consumed; which also makes it a healthier option.
The flexitarian diet is just what it sounds like, flexible. Flexitarians consume less meat than the average person and focus more of their meals on other natural food sources, such as vegetables, nuts, and fruits, but they do still consume meat. Practicing "Meatless Monday" is a good way to reduce your meat consumption and practice a flexitarian diet. If you practice Meatless Monday for one year you save an average of 23,212 gallons of water.
The Mediterranean/pescatarian diet allows the consumption of fish, eggs, dairy, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and wheat. The Mediterranean diet especially relies much less on heavily processed foods and is a much more natural alternative to many diets consumed by the average person. The pescatarian diet can present an issue if you consume too many fish with high mercury content. It has also been revealed that the fishing industry has been utilizing unethical fishing practices such as killing dolphins and whales for sport (not consumption) and overfishing which will likely lead to more aquatic species extinction.
Hopefully you now have a better understanding of the sustainable diets available and how they each work. As you can see, there are certain benefits to each type of diet for both your health and the health of the planet. The next time you reach for a cheeseburger consider what it takes to produce that small amount of meat and the consequences it can have on your health.
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