Best Diet for You & the Planet

Take time to consciously expand your 'circle of awareness' and "think globally; act locally." I was introduced to this concept while I was in graduate school at Teacher's College, Columbia University. My advisor, Joan Dye Gussow, author of the Feeding Web and close friend of Francis Moore Lappe, author of Diet for a Small Planet, opened my eyes to the impact that each of us has via the choices we make. Our planet Earth has exhaustible resources and man's lack of respect for this inconvenient truth has the potential for making our planet uninhabitable.

Did you know that the diet that is best for you and your holistic health is also the diet that is best for our planet, Earth? Whether you are choosing to follow The Blue Zone Diet, The Anti- inflammatory Diet, The Mediterranean Diet, The MIND Diet, a Flexitarian, Vegetarian, or Vegan Diet, all of these "diets" or eating plans have been shown to positively impact your holistic health and are the safest for our planet.

These ways of eating are best for preventing obesity, heart disease, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, many cancers, strokes, Alzheimer's Disease, and dementia. These eating habits promote long-term, sustainable weight loss, health, and longevity. These ways of eating (diets) have

many commonalities. What do they all have in common?

• they are plant-based

• food choices are nutrient-dense

• food choices are phytochemical- and anti-oxidant-rich

• food choices are organic (if possible); most important with

  foods on the E.W.G.'s. 2021 "Dirty Dozen" list.

• foods are locally sourced (if possible)

• foods are whole versus processed

• protein sources are also plant-based

• fats are primarily unsaturated; high in omega-3 fatty acids.

  The dietary choices listed above are also the best for
  our environment and the health of our planet. If you are concerned about preserving natural resources, lowering harmful greenhouse gas emissions, promoting food sustainability, and promoting the health of our planet, the best diet is plant-based, organic, and locally sourced.

  If you are interested in learning more about this topic, please read U.S. News & World Report February 20, 2019, Best Diets for the Environment by Lisa Esposito,