It’s been a chock full week of information hasn’t it!!
Get in touch if you’ve any questions or comments: jeannepoirier@yahoo.com
Welcome to Day 7 of the Global
15 Day Plant-Rich Diet Challenge!
Week 1 Breakfast Challenge – Eat a plant-based breakfast!
Plant-Based Recipe of the Day
Banana Almond Granola (with 3 ways to eat it!)
Add some chilled plant milk over this very easy and flavourful granola and the breakfast is sorted.
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Prep Time: 25 Minutes
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Cook Time: 50 Minutes
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Total Time: 75 Minutes
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Servings: 2
Fact for the Day: Water Footprint of Meat and Dairy
The desirability of reducing our carbon footprint is generally recognized, but the related and equally urgent need to reduce our water footprint is often overlooked. Here are some points that need attention about the hidden water cost of animal products:
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The water footprint of any animal product is larger than the water footprint of a wisely chosen crop product with equivalent nutritional value.
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The supply chain of an animal product starts with feed crop cultivation and ends with the consumer. In each step of the chain, there is a direct water footprint, which refers to the water consumption in that step, but also an indirect water footprint, which refers to the water consumption in the previous steps. By far, the largest contribution to the total water footprint of all final animal products comes from the first step: growing the feed.
Read the full report here.
A study published in 2020 found that the largest user of water in the United States is cattle feed. Irrigating cattle feed uses 23% of all water nationally, 32% in the drought-stricken Western U.S. and 55% in the equally drought-stricken Colorado River Basin.
The National Geographic journalist writing about the study said it best: “The burgers, steaks, yogurt, and ice cream Americans eat in abundance, the new results show, is directly related to the overuse of river water—leaving the ecosystems and communities that depend on those rivers drastically stressed under even the best of circumstances. During bad drought years, the stress ratchets up on many western rivers, nudging over 50 species of fish closer to extinction or imperilment…”
Bonus Tip: Plant-based Nutrition
Wondering whether plant-rich diets (including 100% plant-based diets) are nutritionally-adequate? It’s a good question and we want to reassure you that the answer is…YES!
The Position of the American Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: Vegetarian Diets thoroughly explores the research around the nutritional adequacy of vegetarian, including vegan, diets. “It is the position of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics that appropriately planned vegetarian, including vegan, diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits for the prevention and treatment of certain diseases. These diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, adolescence, older adulthood, and for athletes. Plant-based diets are more environmentally sustainable than diets rich in animal products because they use fewer natural resources and are associated with much less environmental damage. Vegetarians and vegans are at reduced risk of certain health conditions, including ischemic heart disease, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, certain types of cancer, and obesity.”
What about protein? Where will you get protein on a plant-rich or plant-based diet and will you get enough?
According to the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), “A diet rich in grains, legumes and vegetables provides all of the protein our bodies need without the large amounts of saturated fat and cholesterol found in animal foods.”
Click HERE for a 10-minute video from the The Plantrician Project that answers the question “Where will I get my protein” on a plant-based diet.
Click HERE to see a fun 1-page infographic from PCRM showing how easy it is to get plenty of protein on a plant-based diet.
And if you enjoy reading, click HERE for another terrific, brief research-based article about plant-based diets published in the Kaiser Permanente Journal titled “Nutritional Update for Physicians: Plant-Based Diets.”
Speaker Series Day 7 – Chef AJ
Weight Loss Strategies – An Interview with Chef AJ on Healthy Sustainable Weight Loss
Chef AJ is a celebrated author, speaker, and weight loss and food expert. She is the creator of the Ultimate Weight Loss Program, that has helped many people achieve the health and body they deserve, and is proud to say her IQ is higher than her cholesterol.
That’s it for Day 7! Arrivederci!
Warm Regards,
The ESRAG Plant-Rich Diet Task Force
(P.S. Please feel free to contact us at any time with questions and/or comments.)
This Task Force resides under the Environmental Sustainability Rotary Action Group (ESRAG) and operates in accordance with Rotary International policy, but is not an agency of, nor controlled by, Rotary International.