So, It's What We're Not Eating That (also) Will Kill Us

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Psychgrrl
Psychgrrl Posts: 3,177 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
"Health effects of dietary risks in 195 countries, 1990–2017: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017"

Published April 3, 2019 in The Lancet

The sweeping review — which analyzed nearly 20 years of dietary data from 195 countries, alongside epidemiological studies about nutrition-related health risks and benefits — estimates that poor diets killed 11 million people around the world in 2017, mostly by contributing to cardiovascular disease and cancer. That makes subpar nutrition a bigger health threat than well-known risks like smoking, according to the research. (From the TIME article linked below)

“Low intake of healthy foods and high intake of unhealthy foods is the leading cause of mortality, globally and in many countries.” study co-author Dr. Ashkan Afshin.

A couple summaries:
For my fellow Americans, if you look at the charts, our trans fats consumption and processed meats consumption is far above the recommended levels. We pretty much all get too much sodium, more so in Asian areas with high sodium sauces. And as far as many other regions go, I guess you can eat too many beans (legumes)! (The optimal amount here is based on meta-analyses of nutrition studies to see what quantity of food is associated with the lowest death rate.)--From the Popular Science article linked above.

It all needs to be taken in context. And the researchers readily admit there's no exact science to this (though they explain their methodology, and thought the approach was novel (not only looking at what we're eating, but what we're not eating). And I found the global perspective interesting. Wanted to share.

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