A narrative review of dietary patterns and their environmental impacts

Abstract

Dietary pattern is a major factor affecting on environment and human health. Food production and consumption can have major roles in greenhouse gas emissions, increasing water and land use. There are no review papers comparing omnivorous, vegan, and lacto-ovo-vegetarian (LOV) in terms of their effects on the environment. Thus, this study aims to fill the gap in the literature by reviewing dietary patterns and their environmental and health impacts. This study adopts a literature review approach to qualitatively describe the association between dietary patterns and health and environmental impacts. This study reviewed studies investigating different diets on the environment. Several studies were reviewed for environmental impacts. Plant-based diets have a lower environmental impact than animal-based diets. Both vegan and LOV dietary patterns have positive impact on the environment in both terms of environmental sustainability and human health. Additionally, plant-based diets seem to have positive effects on health, but careful planning is required to ensure all nutrients are met, especially for those with higher physical activity or specific health conditions.