Indian diets were both scientific and sustainable and should be saved
Sunita Narain is an environmentalist and director-general of the Center for Science and Environment (CSE). Sharing her perspective with Times Evoke, the renowned ecologist discusses the role food once played in indigenous Indian culture, the impact of food commodification — and why we must reclaim the food science we always knew:
Speaking of the best diets
we must first distinguish between the earlier food consumption habits of India and the way these have changed now. We should celebrate how our food consumption habits used to be — India’s dietary patterns have shown that food was very connected to the local ecosystem.
It was ecologically diverse —every part of India celebrated its biodiversity through its food culture. The traditional Indian food habit was possibly the most biodiverse diet in the world.
Of course, other diets were similar before they were turned into monoculture diets where everyone eats rice, wheat, and a hamburger.‘Life cycle analyses show a plant-based diet is most nutritious with the least environmental impacts The indigenous Indian diet understood that food, built into our day-to-day lives, is one of the most powerful forms of medicine we have. But these systems of belief and practice were disrupted by the force of the market.
From being medicine that strengthened us, food has become a marketable commodity now.
What you eat at home or learn from your local cuisine is changing because you’re now designing your diet based on aspiration, on what others eat, on what is supposed to be modern, and what is easily available — this transmutation is happening because of the power of markets, food companies, and food commodification.
Once, many of us were taught about hot foods, cold foods, or foods you should eat seasonally.
Now, of course, there is nothing called a season because you can get the same food across the whole year. But there was a scientific reason to eat something in a particular season — this was for the goodness that food gave you at that time of year.
You don’t eat dry fruits in summer, for instance. These are traditionally eaten in winter because of the warmth they give you in colder months.
BEING WHOLESOME:
, But Indian diets were truly remarkable in how they optimized biodiversity and local economies. Individual health, local foods, and seasonal factors all came together in our diet. This was intuitive in terms of what works for you because of the environment in which you live. And it was intuitive about your local ecology and the plants and foods grown around you.
We’ve ranked countries by the healthfulness of their diets — this is strongly correlated with sustainability because these diets are more plant-based. The countries around the Mediterranean are among the best, especially Turkey and Israel, while countries in Southeast Asia, including Vietnam and Japan, also ranked high.
That said, all countries have much room for improvement as the best ranked about 65 on a scale of 100 — India scored about 50, its positive aspects provided by traditional whole grains and
Plant-based diet
Legumes and relatively low amounts of red meat.
With rising affluence, though, both India and China are seeing significant dietary shifts. What are the implications of this?
Certainly, in many parts of India, healthy and sustainable traditional diets are being displaced by more meat and refined
starches, and sugar. These are part of heavily promoted industrial diets that have adverse effects on individual and planetary health. China’s red meat intake has now caught up with consumption levels in the US.
Alongside environmental impacts, such changes are fueling epidemics of obesity and diabetes. We need to reverse these trends for health and sustainability reasons.China has officially adopted a policy to reduce the consumption of red meat, as this can reverse the progress made in health and economics.
Also, it isn’t inevitable that red meat consumption must increase with income — we see it declining in more educated groups in the US now as people learn about the benefits of plant-based diets.
Almost all the recent growth in the food retail sector has been in plant-based options. Today, people can also incorporate healthy foods from around the world in their diets — soy foods, for, For example, wasn’t traditionally a part of the Indian diet, but many soy-based dishes from across Asia provide flavorful and healthy options.
What are your recommendations for developed nations like the US, whose dietary preferences have impacted the global environment?
The US should be decreasing the consumption of red meat, refined starches, sugar, potatoes, and salt, and increasing the intake of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and fish. Again, people with higher education and incomes are improving their diets — but those with lower incomes and education are not being able to do this.
Overall, rates of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and obesity-related cancers are going up — and life expectancy is going down
Given the importance of a plant-based diet, should governments intervene to popularize this? Worldwide, government policies, such as subsidies, taxes, research, and infrastructure support, play a major role in determining the foods we eat — unfortunately, these policies often support diets that are neither healthy nor sustainable. Each country should ensure the production and consumption of healthy and sustainable diets for everyone — this is a matter of justice and our collective future.
Reference:
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indian-diets-were-both-scientific-and-sustainable-these-must-be-saved/articleshow/80176742.cms
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