Planet-first eating reduces early mortality risk by almost a third, according to research
It is better for people and the environment to eat more whole plant foods, less animal foods, and less highly processed foods, according to Dr. David Katz, a preventive and lifestyle medicine specialist who was not involved in the study.
“The same message is amplified in this paper: meaningful reductions in all-cause mortality are associated with adherence to a dietary pattern that is supportive of the health of the planet and sustainability,” the author wrote in an email. Katz founded the organization True Health Initiative, which brings together specialists from around the world to promote evidence-based lifestyle medicine.
A significant contributor to the climate catastrophe is food production. For example, scientists claim that raising livestock for human use requires a significant amount of agricultural land and leads to deforestation, biodiversity loss, and water pollution. Chewing animals can release harmful chemicals into the atmosphere that have a remarkable effect on the ecosystem. According to the UN Environment Programme, methane, a greenhouse gas that is 80 times more potent than carbon dioxide in warming the earth over a 20-year period, is produced by the burps and feces of cattle, sheep, and goats.
A diet suitable for both humans and the environment The 37 eminent experts from 16 nations that make up the EAT-Lancet Commission developed a diet in 2019 with the dual objectives of optimizing human health and minimizing the environmental effect of feeding billions of people. The resulting meal plan placed a strong emphasis on consuming limited amounts of meat and dairy along with a greater intake of whole grains, legumes, and other plant-based proteins. The study examined dietary data from over 200,000 men and women to determine how it compared to the Eat-Lancet dietary guidelines. It was published on Monday in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
All participants were free of significant illnesses at the start of the long-term government studies, the Nurses’ Health Study I and II and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study. Study participants completed food questionnaires every four years for thirty-four years, giving researchers a tonne of data.
Based on the consumption of 15 food groups, the researchers then assigned a score to each diet. Planet-friendly foods include legumes, whole grains, tubers, vegetables, entire fruits, soybean meals, and unsaturated plant oils like olive oil. They also require fewer resources to grow overall. A substantial amount of land is needed to grow foods like cattle, and to a lesser extent, sheep, goats, pigs, and poultry. The use of added sugar, which has numerous known health hazards, was also measured. Willett stated that although earlier research has examined the effects of the planetary health diet, none has been as comprehensive as this one. “More statistical precision is possible because this is a much longer and substantially larger study with repeated assessments of diet over more than three decades,” he stated. According to the study, those in the top 10% of Eat-Lancet planetary diet followers had a 30% lower risk of dying young from any cause than those in the lowest 10%.
according to Willett, those who adhered to the planetary diet the closest had a 57% lower risk of dying from a respiratory illness, a 10% lower risk of dying from cancer, a 14% lower risk of dying from cardiovascular disease, and a 28% lower risk of neurodegenerative mortality. The results demonstrate the close connection between planetary and human health. He continued, “Eating well promotes environmental sustainability, which is crucial for everyone’s health and well-being on Earth.
