Eating Raw Food Strengthens Our Environment

When we talk about eating healthy we typically hear that it is important to eat more fruits and vegetables, less red meat, saturated fats and sugars. While these are generally agreed upon in the mainstream, those of us who seek a higher standard for ourselves would agree that there are degrees within the spectrum of healthy diets. When we are aiming higher than the Standard American Diet (acronym SAD and wow does that fit!), there are a variety of diets that get increasingly restrictive while at the same time getting ‘healthier’. A few would include a diet that reduces red meat consumption, the vegetarian diet (which could include processed foods as well as eggs and dairy), the vegan diet (which again can include processed foods as well as foods containing refined sweeteners) and the raw vegan diet (encourages organic foods in their whole form not heated beyond 118 degrees to preserve enzymes). As you can see, the bar gets raised with each level of diet in terms of eliminating foods that are less healthy and incorporating foods with greater nutrient and fiber content. This is great news for your health! But did you know there are also a myriad of other benefits that are gained from eating near the top of the ladder (i.e. the raw vegan diet)?
We hear a lot today about global warming, green house gas emissions and the carbon footprint (or damage to the environment) we are leaving. What may come as a surprise is just how powerful your daily dietary choices are for reducing your carbon footprint. A recent article in the Encyclopedia of Earth states that “In general, the biggest contributors to the carbon footprints of individuals in industrialized nations are transportation and household electricity use. An individual's secondary carbon footprint is dominated by their diet, clothes, and personal products.1 Furthermore, food accounts for 13% of all greenhouse gas emissions.2
Listed below are just a few factors to think about when purchasing your food, not only in terms of energy usage and emissions associated with production, transport etc., but also how your food’s production and handling affects its nutrient content and freshness before it gets to your table. Consider:
• Conventionally Grown Produce vs. Organically Grown Conventionally grown uses chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Agricultural and industrial practices that go into growing and harvesting food create 83% of greenhouse gases3.Organically grown techniques have lower incidence of pesticide residue and better farming practices.• Mode of Transport, or miles traveled, time in transport, fuel consumption. Transportation creates only 11% of the 8.1 metric tons of greenhouse gases that an average U.S. household generates annually from food consumption3. • Processing (cooked or canned)• Storage (refrigerated, frozen)
In terms of analyzing the impact of your dietary choices and the impact to our environment, switching to a totally local diet is equivalent to driving about 1,000 miles less per year. Replacing red meat and dairy with chicken, fish, or eggs for only one day per week reduces emissions equal to 760 miles per year of driving. And switching to vegetables only one day per week cuts the equivalent of driving 1,160 miles per year. 3 I can only imagine what these choices would impact if we considered collectively to make a switch to eating raw vegan just 20-50% of the time!
In summary, if you want to effectuate positive change on both your health and the environment, the raw vegan diet has benefits galore. It encourages the use of fresh, organically and locally grown (when possible) produce which translates to better health through organics higher nutrient values, supports better farming practices, fewer vehicle miles traveled, and saving energy while saving enzymes by not using your stove or oven! Pretty amazing how the way we eat has profound and long reaching effects not only on our bodies but on the world we live in.
References:1 The Encyclopedia of Earth, “Carbon Footprint.” http://www.eoearth.org/article/Carbon_footprint).
2 “Thinking About Food Miles Traveled with Commons Sense.” Carla Wise, May 15, 2008 http://eatdrinkbetter.com/2008/05/15/thinking-about-food-miles-and-carbon-footprints-with-common-sense/
3 The Blue Marble Blog. “Food Miles & Your Carbon Footprint.”http://www.motherjones.com/blue_marble_blog/archives/2008/04/8023_food_miles_your.html