Optimised diets for improving human, animal, and environmental health in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolis in Germany

Abstract

Dietary shifts are needed to align the global food systems with the planetary boundaries and contribute to Sustainable Development Goals. We employed a Life Cycle Assessment framework, extended with indicators reflecting the One Health approach, to assess 2020 food consumption data collected through a survey in the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolis (Germany). Feasible optimisation scenarios representing more sustainable food choices were explored, inducing improvements across human, animal and environmental health. Meat and meat products contributed most to overall environmental impacts and fish and seafood, to animal welfare loss. Sodium intake was the most contributing risk factor for life minutes lost. Reducing 55% of greenhouse gas emissions and improving human health indicators by 25% is possible with a shift towards flexitarian and vegetarian dietary scenarios. These optimisations deliver improvements across One Health dimensions with marginal changes in dietary scenarios and align with the sustainability goals of the EU Green Deal.

Changes in eating habits and lifestyle during the first year of the COVID‐19 pandemic across metropolitan regions in Brazil and Germany: A survey‐based cross‐sectional study

“…Moreover, information on self-reported changes in physical activities during the COVID-19 pandemic was collected, considering the participant's perception of being more or less physically active (indoors or outdoors) and the increase in sitting due, among others, to working from home ('home office'). Information was collected on self-reported physical health evaluation using five scales (1)(2)(3)(4)(5) ("not healthy at all", "not quite health", "moderately healthy", "very healthy", and "extremely healthy"), self-reported non-communicable diseases, smoking habits, pregnancy, or breastfeeding to capture the general health status of the participants.…”