What does it mean to eat sustainably?
Well, glad you asked because that’s the theme of this year’s National Nutrition Month, an annual campaign in March that’s been on our plates so to speak for 50 years. The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has come up with a catchy slogan – Fuel for the Future – but the focus is all about sustainability - how to eat nutritiously while protecting the environment.
Yes, you can do both at the same time.
Unlike some diets, there is no one diet or set of rules that is sustainable. Rather there are foods and eating practices that are more sustainable than others, meaning that the diet is healthy and has a low impact on the environment and food supply.
A sustainable diet is plant-based, meaning it contains more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and legumes than red meat, dairy, processed foods, added sugars and refined grains.
Medical News Today explains why plant foods are favored over animal products.
“For example, farming an acre of corn for human consumption means that all that food can go directly to feeding a growing human population. For people who eat animal products, the same acre of corn would go toward feeding livestock. However, the animals themselves also take up additional land and resources. So, farming animal foods requires significantly more land.”
Eliminating red meat sounds daunting, but cutting back on red meat is doable.
Two suggestions from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Health are: swap out red meat for healthier options such as poultry and seafood; and prioritize hearty and savory plant meals, such as roasting vegetables and using legumes and nuts for texture.
For instance, here is a recipe from Harvard called “Upgraded Basic Stuffed Pepper,” which uses less beef and cheese, and meat-free Mushroom Barley Risotto.
And, no surprise this kind of diet is good for our health. According to Medical News Today, eating less red meat and more plants reduces the risk of obesity, diabetes and heart disease.
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