In a new study, scientists evaluated 5,800 products and created a rating based on their impact on human health and the environment. Study published in Nature Food.
10% of daily calories from beef and processed meats (sausages, bacon) can make a big difference. If you replace them with calories from fruits, vegetables, legumes and seafood, you can get 48 additional minutes of healthy life per day, and greenhouse gas emissions associated with the diet of one person will decrease by a third.
“In general, dietary guidelines lack concrete and practical advice to motivate people to change their behavior. And they rarely talk about the environmental impact of food,” said Katerina Stylianou of the University of Michigan, co-author of the study.
In the study, the scientists used newly developed dietary indexes. They reflect the number of minutes of healthy life associated with the use of various products. For example, a hot dog can cost a person 36 healthy minutes a day, while a serving of nuts instead adds 26 minutes.
When assessing the environmental impact of food, we took into account the environmental impact of its production, processing, waste and some other factors.
The most Nuts, fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains and seafood were found to be environmentally and health-friendly. The most harmful and dangerous are various types of meat (beef, pork, lamb), including processed.
The authors of the study recommend that everyone choose food that is both healthy and has a minimal negative impact on the environment. They believe that the targeted replacement of certain harmful products with useful ones can have a huge effect.
Scientists have noted that although plant-based foods have the best characteristics on average, there can be significant differences within food groups.