1 in 5 Global Deaths
Are Linked to Poor Diet A recent study published in the ‘The Lancet’
found that dietary risk factors in 2017 were
linked to 11 million deaths worldwide. The study spanned across 195 countries
and tracked 15 different dietary elements. A reported 10 million deaths were due to
cardiovascular disease, 913,000 were due to cancer, and Type 2 diabetes accounted for 339,000 deaths. The study found that more deaths were caused
by a lack of whole grains, fruits, nuts and seeds, rather than the high intake of foods
containing trans fats, sugar, and processed meat. This means that while there is a correlation
between unhealthy food and a person's health, the bigger issue comes from people not consuming
the essential foods their bodies need to function. On average, the world ate only 12% of the
recommended amount of nuts and seeds. In addition, global diets also included only
16% of the recommended milk intake and
23% of the recommended amount of whole grains. Some countries did have optimal
intakes in certain categories, such as
the intake of vegetables in central Asia. No region ate the optimal
amount of all 15 dietary elements.