Healthy - Oct 2021 (Sampler)

T H E N U T R I T I O N I S S U E H o w t o WO R D S BY L AU R A P O T T E R W e’re all painfully aware of the fragility of the planet, but we also want to live long, healthy lives where food is a pleasure, rather than a penance. We’re also increasingly aware that healthy choices for our bodies (colourful fruit! Healthy fats in avocado! Hydrating coconut milk!) can carry a hefty environmental price tag. Beyond that, recent research has revealed that 75% of the world’s food supply comes from just 12 plants and ve animal species. And that’s neither varied enough for our health, nor sustainable for our planet. Balance is key. ‘If we get overly consumed by everything we read, we can end up eating nothing at all and developing problems like orthorexia [an unhealthy obsession with “pure” food],’ warns consultant dietitian Sophie Medlin, who explains that even easy-seeming decisions, like cutting out animal products for welfare reasons, can actually be more harmful to the environment than an omnivorous diet if you replace themwith highly processed plant-based foods. ‘How to be both healthy and sustainable is the question of our time,’ agrees Patrick Holden, founding director of the Sustainable Food Trust. ‘It isn’t easy after more than half a century of industrialising our farming, dining out on the planet and destroying much of its capital, but if you want to make the right sustainable choices, you need to buy food with a story you can trust.’ There’s already been a shift. Since the pandemic, sales of fresh organic vegetables have risen bymore than 15%; seasonal veg box demand has soared by 70%; and 52% of us are more environmentally conscious. With all of that in mind, here’s how to navigate the nutritional shifts of our time. e a t n o w KNOWING WHAT ’ S GOOD FOR US AND FOR THE PLANET FEELS HARDER THAN EVER . FROM EAT ING THE RAINBOW TO CUTT ING FOOD MI LES , EXPERTS IN ETHICS , SUSTAINAB I L I TY AND HEALTH ADV ISE US HOW TO SHOP WI TH CONF IDENCE 14 healthy-magazine.co.uk