Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Agriculture and Food, Clayton South, VIC 3168, Australia.
Department of Agricultural Economics, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein 9300, South Africa.
Nutrients. 2019 Aug 9;11(8):1846. doi: 10.3390/nu11081846.
There is widespread interest in dietary strategies that lower environmental impacts. However, various forms of malnutrition are also widely prevalent. In a first study of its kind, we quantify the water-scarcity footprint and diet quality score of a large (>9000) population of self-selected adult daily diets. Here, we show that excessive consumption of discretionary foods-i.e., energy-dense and nutrient-poor foods high in saturated fat, added sugars and salt, and alcohol-contributes up to 36% of the water-scarcity impacts and is the primary factor differentiating healthier diets with lower water-scarcity footprint from poorer quality diets with higher water-scarcity footprint. For core food groups (fruits, vegetables, etc.), large differences in water-scarcity footprint existed between individual foods, making difficult the amendment of dietary guidelines for water-scarcity impact reduction. Very large reductions in dietary water-scarcity footprint are possible, but likely best achieved though technological change, product reformulation and procurement strategies in the agricultural and food industries.
人们普遍关注能够降低环境影响的饮食策略。然而，各种形式的营养不良也广泛存在。在同类的首次研究中，我们量化了一个由 9000 多名自选成年日常饮食组成的大样本的水资源稀缺足迹和饮食质量评分。研究表明，过量摄入任意食物（即高热量、低营养的食物，富含饱和脂肪、添加糖和盐以及酒精）会造成高达 36%的水资源稀缺影响，是区分具有较低水资源稀缺足迹的更健康饮食和具有较高水资源稀缺足迹的低质量饮食的主要因素。对于核心食物组（水果、蔬菜等），个别食物的水资源稀缺足迹存在巨大差异，这使得减少水资源稀缺影响的饮食指南难以修改。通过农业和食品行业的技术变革、产品配方改革和采购策略，大幅减少饮食的水资源稀缺足迹是完全可行的。
