Category: Environmental health

Climate change is largely driven by emission of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Where do these gases come from? Read more here – https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/sources-greenhouse-gas-emissions.

The largest proportion of emissions come from cars, trucks, buses, planes and so on. Over 90% of these vehicles use petroleum-based fuels. Changes to these trends like more hybrid and electric vehicles, and more efficient public transportation, can help lower emissions.

The second largest section is electricity use. Most of the electricity in the United States is produced by burning fossil fuels. Renewable sources include wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and hydro energy, although they only provide about 17% of all energy generation in the US. Read more here – https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/index.php?page=electricity_in_the_united_states. It is vital that citizens make a switch to these renewable sources when they can, but also that they lobby for reforms that lead to more renewable energy generation.

A few other changes in our personal behavior can help reduce emissions. One, switching to a more plant-based diet can help reduce demand for meat production and shrink that section of the farming industry, which is a much bigger polluter and emitter. This can help with your health, as well as decrease the over-fishing of the oceans, which threatens the ocean food web. Also, this can help with deforestation, since many forests are removed to make way for cattle.

Getting more energy-efficient appliances and light bulbs can help reduce your household’s emissions. Setting your thermostat for slightly higher temperatures in the summers and lower in the winters can help with household energy consumption. But most importantly of all, it is important for us to support policy makers who understand and want to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Can you think of any other ideas?

You may have heard people talk about organic food or GMO’s and wondered whether you should change your habits. To make sense of all the labels and controversies, we will define these terms.

Organically produced food has a legal meaning according to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). In general, that means fruits and vegetables that have been produced without the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and meats, seafood and dairy produced with organic feed and without the use of hormones. In order to display the USDA certified organic logo, the company has to undergo a review by the USDA to ensure compliance with the rules.

For consumers, it is usually clear that organically produced food is more expensive. But is it better for our health? Organic foods do contain fewer pesticide residues when tested, but studies have found different results when it comes to nutrition – some studies have found no differences in nutrient levels, while others have found higher amounts of antioxidants and Omega-3 fatty acids – https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/organic-food/art-20043880. This question is yet to be resolved.

The acronym GMO stands for genetically modified organisms. Farmers have genetically modified many crops by the process of artificial selection for hundreds of years. However, science has now allowed faster genetic modification by allowing genes to be inserted or deleted in the lab. The purpose for this is usually to provide more yield, resist pests and common plant diseases and thus require less pesticide use, and boost nutritional value. A law passed in 2016 has made it mandatory to label products produced with GMO crops – in the US most corn, soybean and cotton crops are GMOs (many others may also be produced using GM seeds). All foods produced in this way have to pass Food and Drug Administration clearance in order to be sold. Research has not shown there to be any health issues from eating GMO foods – https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/23/well/eat/are-gmo-foods-safe.html.

While GMO foods are widely considered to be safe, some controversies have arisen based on how the companies that own patents for GM seeds have chosen to enforce their intellectual property – through suing small farmers. Another concern about GMOs is that insertion of other genes into crops may cause allergies – this has yet to be seen in humans or animals.

Local food is generally food that has been produced or grown in close proximity to where people live, but definitions vary. The 2008 Farm Act defined it as being grown within 400 miles of your location, but many people consider 100 miles to make more sense. Local food is often sold in farmer’s markets, through community supported agriculture, or in small local stands and may be produced on urban farms. Some argue that because local food has to travel fewer miles during distribution, that this reduction in greenhouse gas emissions (CO2 and methane), can help slow climate change. While it’s true that emissions are reduced be eating more locally, a greater impact on climate change would be to switch to a vegetarian or semi-vegetarian diet. https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2012/09/04/how-green-is-local-food/

What about the word “natural”? Surely foods that are natural are going to be better for our health! In legal terms, the word natural does not have any definition, so any type of food, including highly processed junk food, can be labeled natural.

What have you heard about these types of food?