Objective: To analyze your diet with respect to nutrition and impact on the environment.

Procedure:

1. Keep a food diary for 1 week. Record all meals, snacks and beverages. Be specific and indicate servings/amounts. (10pts)

2. At the end of 1 week, total up your results in 2 separate graphical representations (pie chart or bar graph).

a. GRAPH 1: Food source chart – what percentage of the foods/beverages you consumed come from meat/poultry, fish/seafood, eggs, dairy (animal sources), fruits, vegetables, grains, beans/nuts/seeds, sugars (plant sources). The various plant and animal categories should be on the x-axis, and the number of servings should be on the y-axis. (scroll down for sample) (10pts)

b. GRAPH 2: Processing chart – what percentage of the foods you consumed are processed or whole. Examples of processed foods: anything that comes in a package with an ingredients list like oreos, cheezits, pop tarts, soda, etc. Examples of whole foods: fruits, vegetables, a steak, etc. (scroll down for sample) (10pts)

3. Answer the analysis questions (3pts each)

a. What percentage of your diet comes from plant sources (#plant items/total food items)? Show your work.

What percentage of your diet comes form animal sources (#animal items/total items)? Show your work.

Based on the above calculations, is your diet more plant or animal based?

b. Look at your food log.

How varied is your diet - i.e. do you eat a lot of different foods or do you tend to eat the same things?

Explain any patterns in your eating habits from day to day, time of week, relative to schedule/activities, etc.

Describe several particular reasons behind the food choices you make.

c. How processed is your diet?

What are the main types of processed foods you eat?

How naturally colorful is your diet? Explain.

d. Think about your beverages. What are they mostly (water, sweetened/processed drinks, caffeinated beverages, fresh juices)?

Do you feel like you're well-hydrated, over-caffeinated, drinking a lot of calories, etc? Explain.

e. Describe how your diet might differ if you lived in a less developed nation? Be specific, give examples.

f. In your opinion, do you have a healthy diet? Explain why or why not.

g. It takes 10 acres to produce an animal-based product, versus 1 acre to produce a plant-based product.

How much land is needed to support your diet? Show your work.

h. It takes 10 units of fossil fuels to produce a processed food, and 2 units to produce a whole food.

How many units are needed to support your diet? Show your work.

i. Based on the above answers, is your diet environmentally friendly? Explain why or why not.

j. Describe several ways you could change your diet to make it healthier and/or more environmentally friendly?

Extension (choose one or more for extra credit)

OPTION 1: Look up the environmental impacts of a vegetarian or plant-based diet versus a diet that is high in animal foods. Present your findings in a paragraph/brief essay, table, or other suitable format. Cite at least 3 sources.

OPTION 2: Look up the health impacts of a vegetarian or plant-based diet versus a diet that is high in animal foods. Present your findings in a paragraph/brief essay, table, or other suitable format. Cite at least 3 sources.

OPTION 3: Look up the economic impacts of a vegetarian or plant-based diet versus a diet that is high in animal foods. Present your findings in a paragraph/brief essay, table, or other suitable format. Cite at least 3 sources.