Food sustainability is only included in 20% of European food-based dietary guidelines

Food sustainability is only included in 20% of European food-based dietary guidelines

The health of the planet and that of humanity are closely linked: the way we eat has a significant impact on our own health and that of the environment. The increase in recent decades in non-communicable diseases that are closely linked to our diet, such as cancer and diabetes, and the fact that food systems account for a third of greenhouse gases, has led a number of international organizations to work to change people's eating habits towards healthier and at the same time more sustainable diets.

Anna Bach Faig, researcher in the FoodLab group and member of the Faculty of Health Sciences at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC), has spent two years leading a research project commissioned by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2019. The project, entitled “Dietary Patterns for Health and Sustainability”, was tasked with creating an international consensus among experts and developing measures to make progress towards a more sustainable and healthy food system for Europe. Bach Faig's research at the UOC has always focused on the connection between nutrition and health, and in recent years she has expanded this to include sustainability. She said: “What we put on our plates is so important.

Emerging from a meeting in Copenhagen with international experts in the fields of nutrition and sustainability, the researcher and her team – including Sergi Fàbregues, member of the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences at UOC and researcher of the GenTIC research group IN3 responsible for the methodological part – have published an open access article in BMC Public Health that provides a common understanding of this creates what sustainable healthy nutrition should include.

The article concludes that a multi-stakeholder approach is needed, while implementing a coordinated and coherent mix of strategies in different areas, such as: B. the formulation of strategic guidelines and changes to the law. An important step is the need to update healthy eating guidelines, since most of them do not take sustainability into account: "It is necessary to update existing guidelines or create and implement new ones. Only 20% of European food-based dietary guidelines take this food sustainability into account," explains the researcher. Recently, AESAN, the Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition, published a report with recommendations on sustainable diets and physical activity for the public.

The healthiest and most sustainable diet is a predominantly plant-based diet

“There is broad scientific consensus on the dietary patterns that Europeans should adopt to improve their health and sustainability: in particular, there is a need to increase our intake of plant-based foods (fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds) and reduce our consumption of red meat – both processed and unprocessed – and ultra-processed foods high in salt, Fat and/or sugar content,” said the UOC researcher.

This actually means returning to the traditional Mediterranean diet, which is high in vegetables and fish and low in meat (the Japanese diet would be another valid option). In addition to their positive health effects, plant-based diets are beneficial for sustainability because such foods have less impact on the environment than animal-based ones, not only in terms of greenhouse gas emissions, but also in terms of water, land use, nitrogen and phosphorus, confirmed Bach Faig. "The Mediterranean diet is a good example of a dietary pattern that benefits health and the environment. Unfortunately, the public's dietary habits have become more 'Westernized' through the consumption of empty calories from refined sugars, fats and alcohol." This has led to an increase in overweight and obesity, as well as an increase in non-communicable chronic diseases. For example, according to the European Regional Obesity Report 2022, Spain is one of the European countries with the highest prevalence of childhood obesity.

Measures for a healthier and more sustainable diet

The other outcome of this UOC-led research was the publication of a WHO report on “Healthy and sustainable diets: key areas of work in the WHO European Region”. This document summarizes a number of lines of action to promote changes in food systems and dietary habits. These include the need for public procurement processes for food providers to prioritize healthy and sustainable diets; increased research into the nutritional value and environmental impact of processed plant foods (some of which contain high amounts of salt and sugar); Reformulate processed foods, reduce fat, sugar and salt content, etc.

With such changes we can significantly reduce the impact on the planet and improve population health. If we consider that "22% of deaths worldwide are due to high intake of salt and low intake of whole grains and fruits, maintaining the Mediterranean dietary pattern in our context is of critical public health importance," the researcher noted.

The health of our planet is a key strategic theme for the UOC, as is research into nutrition and healthy and sustainable eating. The university has just received the Catalan Network of Healthy Universities Award for a master's degree project on health promotion towards the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) from a student of its master's degree in nutrition and health.

Source:

University of Oberta de Catalunya

Reference:

Bach-Faig, A., et al. (2022) Consensus building around the design and implementation of sustainable healthy nutrition: a basis for policy makers. BMC Public Health. doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-13756-y.

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