One large chicken breast a day and a mostly plant-based diet could prevent 26 million premature deaths.

It is permissible to encourage people to eat less meat and more fruits and vegetables. Scientists say they prevent 26 million premature deaths a year.

Researchers at the University of Edinburgh want people to eat 350 calories of meat, dairy products and fish each day – about the equivalent of a large chicken breast.

They estimate that people in G20 countries eat an average of 620 calories of animal products, which is about the same as two large hamburgers.

Experts said people should also aim to consume 720 calories of fruits and vegetables. For example, an apple, a banana, and two bell peppers each contain about 100 calories.

They say changing eating habits can reduce deaths from obesity, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, and cancer.

The experts behind the proposal – also reversing the controversial argument that eating less meat is good for the environment – ​​argue that policymakers should use Covid’s recovery plans to encourage people to eat healthier.

HOW SHOULD A BALANCED NUTRITION BE?

According to the NHS, meals should be potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, ideally whole grains.

• Eat at least 5 servings of different fruits and vegetables every day. All fresh, frozen, dried and canned fruits and vegetables count

• Basic meals based on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, preferably wholemeal

• 30 grams of fiber per day: This is equivalent to eating all of the following: 5 servings of fruit and vegetables, 2 whole grain biscuits, 2 thick slices of whole wheat bread, and a large baked potato in the crust

• Have some alternatives to milk or dairy products (such as soy drinks) and choose lower-fat and less-sugar options.

• Eat beans, legumes, fish, eggs, meat and other proteins (including 2 servings of fish per week, one of which is fat)

• Choose unsaturated fats and spreads and consume sparingly.

• Drink 6-8 glasses / glass of water a day

• Adults should have less than 6 g of salt per day and less than 20 g of saturated fat for women and less than 30 g for men.

Source: NHS Eatwell Guide

Aimen Sattar, one of the researchers involved in the study, said the analysis showed the “dramatic benefit” of improving diets.

A poor diet, defined as eating too much salt and too little whole grains, fruits, vegetables, omega-3s, nuts and seeds, is estimated to cause 11 million deaths worldwide each year from diseases such as heart disease, stroke and cancer. .

Reducing meat consumption has also been associated with preventing premature death.

Edinburgh scholars have modeled four different Covid recovery scenarios by examining the impact of combining policies designed to promote healthier diets.

The findings, published in The Lancet Planetary Health, say switching to a more plant-based diet could prevent 2,583 premature deaths per million people by 2060.

With the world population exceeding 10 billion that year, that would mean 26 million fewer deaths by 2060 alone.

With this strategy, people consumed 2400 calories per day, of which 820 came from whole foods such as wheat and corn.

720 came from fruits and vegetables, 350 from animal products such as beef, chicken and eggs.

The rest came from oils and legumes, sugar, and starchy roots like potatoes.

By comparison, bailouts aimed solely at returning economic activity to pre-pandemic levels could lead to an additional 780 deaths per million people by 2060, the equivalent of about 8 million per year.

This model assumed that people adhered roughly to historical diets of 2,600 calories per day, consisting largely of whole grains (900), animal products (620), oil and legumes (492).

Calculations also showed that the transition to a healthier diet has reduced the use of nitrogen fertilizers by 40 million tons and water for fields by 400 square kilometers.

This is because eating less meat means less land is used for agriculture and animal feeding, while low-meat diets also reduce biodiversity and natural land loss, the researchers said.

“The stimulus packages for Covid recovery offer an opportunity to reduce the impact of the food system on the most pressing global challenges,” said Sattar, a PhD student involved in the research.

As a guide, the NHS states that the average man needs 2,500 calories a day to maintain a healthy weight. For the average woman, this figure is around 2,000 per day.