Changes in dietary carbon footprint over ten years relative to individual characteristics and food intake in the V\xe4sterbotten Intervention Programme

Therese Hjorth,Elinor Hallström,Ena Huseinovic,Anna Strid,Ingegerd Johansson,Ulf Sonesson,Bernt Lindahl,Anna Winkvist

doi:10.1038/s41598-019-56924-8

Therese Hjorth, Elinor Hallström + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-56924-8

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Abstract

The objective was to examine 10-year changes in dietary carbon footprint relative to individual characteristics and food intake in the unique longitudinal Västerbotten Intervention Programme, Sweden. Here, 14 591 women and 13 347 men had been followed over time. Food intake was assessed via multiple two study visits 1996–2016, using a 64-item food frequency questionnaire. Greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) related to food intake, expressed as kg carbon dioxide equivalents/1000 kcal and day, were estimated. Participants were classified into GHGE quintiles within sex and 10-year age group strata at both visits. Women and men changing from lowest to highest GHGE quintile exhibited highest body mass index within their quintiles at first visit, and the largest increase in intake of meat, minced meat, chicken, fish and butter and the largest decrease in intake of potatoes, rice and pasta. Women and men changing from highest to lowest GHGE quintile exhibited basically lowest rates of university degree and marriage and highest rates of smoking within their quintiles at first visit. Among these, both sexes reported the largest decrease in intake of meat, minced meat and milk, and the largest increase in intake of snacks and, for women, sweets. More research is needed on how to motivate dietary modifications to reduce climate impact and support public health.

Highlights

To achieve the global 2 °C climate target, emissions from agriculture as well as food production and consumption must be reduced, especially in affluent societies
While scientific knowledge of how food products differ in climate impact is rather comprehensive[19], research is more limited on how changes in dietary Greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) relate to individual characteristics and specific food choices in a longitudinal design, and the area is rapidly gaining increased scholarly interest[15,20,21]
Over the 10 years, Body mass index (BMI) increased by one unit and the proportion of smokers decreased for both women and men (Table 1)

Summary

Introduction

To achieve the global 2 °C climate target, emissions from agriculture as well as food production and consumption must be reduced, especially in affluent societies. On the contrary average Swedish consumption of fruit, vegetables, legumes and whole grains are below recommended levels[14] Both environmental and health benefits could be achieved by changes in dietary intake[15]. While scientific knowledge of how food products differ in climate impact is rather comprehensive[19], research is more limited on how changes in dietary GHGE relate to individual characteristics and specific food choices in a longitudinal design, and the area is rapidly gaining increased scholarly interest[15,20,21] Such information is valuable to identify target populations for public health interventions and develop effective policy instruments to reduce climate impact from diet. The aim of this study was to estimate 10-year changes in dietary carbon footprint in relation to individual characteristics and 10-year changes in food intake in a large population-based, longitudinal cohort in northern Sweden

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