Food's environmental impact

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From the course by Stanford University

Child Nutrition and Cooking

4587 ratings

Stanford University

Child Nutrition and Cooking

4587 ratings

Eating patterns that begin in childhood affect health and well-being across the lifespan. The culture of eating has changed significantly in recent decades, especially in parts of the world where processed foods dominate our dietary intake. This course examines contemporary child nutrition and the impact of the individual decisions made by each family. The health risks associated with obesity in childhood are also discussed. Participants will learn what constitutes a healthy diet for children and adults and how to prepare simple, delicious foods aimed at inspiring a lifelong celebration of easy home-cooked meals. This course will help prepare participants to be the leading health providers, teachers and parents of the present and future.The text and other material in this course may include the opinion of the specific instructor and are not statements of advice, endorsement, opinion, or information of Stanford University.

From the lesson

Labels, Allergies and Taste

What have we learned about achieving good eating habits based on enjoyment of the right foods? More tips on working with food allergies, reading nutrition labels, and understanding the elements of taste. Cooking this week: the simple stew, a basic homemade salad dressing plus a Sunday morning treat that will make the whole family smile.

Reading nutrition labels 6:03

Protecting Children's Health5:25

Food's environmental impact2:42

Meet the Instructors

Maya Adam, MD
Lecturer
Stanford School of Medicine

[MUSIC]

So, tonight we have these alternatives for dinner.

And I'm going to ask Hannah to explain to me

what are the environmental consequences of these different choices.

I know that these two are probably healthier if we have them more often.

And we probably should have these less often, in terms of our health.

But I'm not sure about the health of the environment.

So I'd like to ask Hannah about that.

>> So it turns out that what's healthier for

you, is also healthier for the environment.

We're very lucky.

So when you look at these options, the beef and the chicken.

There are a lot of fossil fuels that actually went into producing this food.

It goes into the corn that the beef eats.

There's a lot of pesticides and fertilizers that come from fossil fuels.

It goes to the shipping the transportation the manufacturing.

And there's actually 30 times the amount

of greenhouse gas emissions that come from a

kilogram of beef, than from a kilogram of lentils.

>> Wow, that's interesting.

>> So, as we look at this spectrum, this has

the most greenhouse gas emissions that come out of it.

Chicken is better, it's much more efficient than beef.

But these are, are the best choices.

Also, it takes a lot more water to produce the

chicken and the beef, than it does to produce these vegetables.

There are thousands of gallons of water behind every hamburger.

In addition to water, we use antibiotics to raise these animals.

And we use it just to fatten them up more quickly.

And to prevent them from getting sick because they're so crowded together.

This could be really bad for humans.

Because if it creates antibiotic

resistance in animals, those bacteria could

spread to humans and we wouldn't have a way to fix it.

Lastly, the cows and the chicken create so much waste,

that we don't know how to get rid of it.

Especially from cows.

The manure sits in these enormous lagoons.

And it can pollute the air and the water for hundreds of miles around.

>> So you're saying, we should eat

vegetables and plant based proteins more often.

And meats, white or red, less frequently than these guys.

>> Exactly.

>> Things that are healthy for us, are also healthy for the environment.

>> That's right.

So I think maybe tonight, we'll have this. And maybe tomorrow night we'll

have a bit of that. What do you think?

Good plan? Now I know what to make for dinner.

[MUSIC]

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