Comparing nutritional, economic, and environmental performances of diets according to their levels of greenhouse gas emissions

Seconda, Louise; Baudry, Julia; Allès, Benjamin; Boizot-Szantaï, Christine; Soler, Louis-Georges; Galán, Pilar; Herçberg, Serge; Langevin, Brigitte; Lairon, Denis; Pelletier, Philippe; Kesse‐Guyot, Emmanuelle

doi:10.1007/s10584-018-2195-1

Cited by 44 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…Thus, according to the current Japanese diet, diet-related GHGE was positively associated with nutrition adequacy. Our result is inconsistent with observational studies from Western countries, where relatively consistent inverse associations between diet-related GHGE and nutritional adequacy or diet-quality scores were found [ 3 – 9 ] with a few exceptions [ 2 , 7 ]. These inconsistent findings between this study and Western studies could be at least partly explained by difference in food intake and major food sources of diet-related GHGE.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…Most of previous observational studies have shown inverse associations between diet-related GHGE and adequacy of nutrient intake [ 3 ] and overall diet quality [ 4 – 9 ], while a few showed positive or null associations [ 2 , 7 ]. On the other hand, a series of scenario studies have shown that modeled healthy diets meeting dietary guidelines did not always improve diet-related GHGE [ 10 – 12 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Association between diet-related greenhouse gas emissions and nutrient intake adequacy among Japanese adults

et al. 2020

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Objectives A growing number of Western studies have been exploring sustainable and healthy dietary patterns that target to reduce diet-related greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) and to achieve nutritional needs. However, research is limited among Asian populations, where food sources for diet-related GHGE differ from those in Western populations. This study aimed to investigate associations between diet-related GHGE and the prevalence of inadequate nutritional intake. Methods A cross-sectional study was carried out among 392 healthy Japanese volunteers aged 20–69 years. Dietary intake was assessed by four-non-consecutive day diet record. Diet-related GHGE was estimated using the Global Link Input-Output model and adjusted for energy intake by residual method. Prevalence of inadequacy was defined as a percentage of participants with nutrient intake outside the Tentative Dietary Goal for Preventing Lifestyle-Related Disease or below the Estimated Average Requirement defined by the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) for Japanese. The association between diet-related GHGE and the prevalence of inadequacy of the usual intake of each nutrient was examined using logistic regression models. Results Participants with higher diet-related GHGE had overall better adherence to the DRIs. Intakes of all selected nutrients were positively associated with diet-related GHGE, except for carbohydrate, total fat, and saturated fat. With increasing quartile of diet-related GHGE, the prevalence of inadequacy decreased for protein, dietary fiber, potassium, vitamins A, B-6, and C, thiamin, riboflavin, calcium, magnesium, iron, and zinc, while that for sodium increased. Conclusions Diets with lower diet-related GHGE did not have better adherence to the DRIs compared to diets with higher diet-related GHGE among Japanese adults. Drastic dietary change or other strategies such as improving the food system would be needed to achieve a sustainable and healthy diet among Japanese.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association between diet-related greenhouse gas emissions and nutrient intake adequacy among Japanese adults

et al. 2020

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“…One analysis shows that high meat eaters in the UK had 1.9 times and medium meat eaters had about 1.5 times more of GHGEs than an LOV, and that the food consumed by high meat eaters is associated with 2.5 times more GHGEs that that consumed by a vegan, and even average meat eaters are responsible for twice as many GHGEs [12]. A second study reports similar conclusions, based on the number and composition of 2000 kcal consumed in various diets: 7.19 kg for high meat eaters (100 g of meat per day or more), 5.63 kg for medium meat-eaters (50-99 g of meat per day), 4.67 kg for low meat-eaters (less than 50 g per day), 3.81 kg for vegetarians, and 2.89 kg for vegans [7,29].…”

Section: Environmental Impact Of a Vegan Dietmentioning

confidence: 57%

Which Diet Has the Least Environmental Impact on Our Planet? A Systematic Review of Vegan, Vegetarian and Omnivorous Diets

et al. 2019

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The food that we consume has a large impact on our environment. The impact varies significantly between different diets. The aim of this systematic review is to address the question: Which diet has the least environmental impact on our planet? A comparison of a vegan, vegetarian and omnivorous diets. This systematic review is based on 16 studies and 18 reviews. The included studies were selected by focusing directly on environmental impacts of human diets. Four electronic bibliographic databases, PubMed, Medline, Scopus and Web of Science were used to conduct a systematic literature search based on fixed inclusion and exclusion criteria. The durations of the studies ranged from 7 days to 27 years. Most were carried out in the US or Europe. Results from our review suggest that the vegan diet is the optimal diet for the environment because, out of all the compared diets, its production results in the lowest level of GHG emissions. Additionally, the reviewed studies indicate the possibility of achieving the same environmental impact as that of the vegan diet, without excluding the meat and dairy food groups, but rather, by reducing them substantially.

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“…8,9 All these studies contributed to our existing knowledge about diet and climate; however, most used aggregate diets, which miss the nuance seen in the wide variation in GHGE of self-selected diets. [10][11][12] By working with a single datapoint (ie, a national average), these studies were unable to assess which individuals might be receptive to making changes and, ultimately, how policies might be better targeted to induce such changes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Addressing the carbon footprint, healthfulness, and costs of self-selected diets in the USA: a population-based cross-sectional study

Willits-Smith

Aranda

Heller

et al. 2020

The Lancet Planetary Health

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Background The role of diet in health is well established and, in the past decade, more attention has been given to the role of food choices in the environment. The agricultural sector produces about a quarter of the world's greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE), and meat production, especially beef, is an important contributor to global GHGE. Our study aimed to address a fundamental gap in the diet-climate literature: identifying consumers who are receptive to making dietary changes, and the effect of their potential changes on GHGE, diet healthfulness, and diet costs. Methods Dietary data on US individuals from a nationally representative survey were linked to food-related GHGE. We identified individuals receptive to changing their diets (potential changers) as those who reported trying US dietary guidance and were likely to agree that humans contribute to climate change. We assessed GHGE, diet healthfulness measured by the Healthy Eating Index (HEI), and diet costs before and after hypothetical changes replacing either beef or meats with poultry or plant-protein foods. Findings Our sample comprised 7188 individuals, of whom 16% were potential changers. These were disproportionately women, highly educated, or had higher income compared with individuals deemed not likely to change. Replacing 100% of beef intake in potential changers with poultry reduced mean dietary GHGE by 1•38 kg CO 2-equivalents per person per day (95% CI 1•19-1•58), a 35•7% decrease. This replacement also increased mean HEI by 1•7% and reduced mean diet costs by 1•7%. We observed the largest changes when replacing all beef, pork, or poultry intake with plant-protein foods (GHGE decreased by 49•6%, mean HEI increased by 8•7%, and dietary costs decreased by 10•5%). Hypothetical replacements in the potential changers alone resulted in whole population reductions in 1-day dietary GHGE of 1•2% to 6•7%, equivalent to 22-126 million fewer passenger vehicle km. Interpretation Individual-level diet studies that include a variation in response by consumers can improve our understanding of the effects of climate policies such as those that include sustainability information in national dietary guidance. In our study, we found that changes by a small percentage of motivated individuals can modestly reduce the national dietary GHGE. Moreover, these substitutions can modestly improve diet healthfulness and reduce diet costs for individuals who make these changes. Funding Wellcome Trust.

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Comparing nutritional, economic, and environmental performances of diets according to their levels of greenhouse gas emissions

Cited by 44 publications

References 45 publications

Association between diet-related greenhouse gas emissions and nutrient intake adequacy among Japanese adults

Association between diet-related greenhouse gas emissions and nutrient intake adequacy among Japanese adults

Which Diet Has the Least Environmental Impact on Our Planet? A Systematic Review of Vegan, Vegetarian and Omnivorous Diets

Addressing the carbon footprint, healthfulness, and costs of self-selected diets in the USA: a population-based cross-sectional study

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