The potential impact of increased whole grain consumption among Chinese adults on reducing healthcare costs and carbon footprint

作     者：Xin Zhang Jingjing Wang Fuli Tan Haixiu Gao Shenggen Fan Xin Zhang;Jingjing Wang;Fuli Tan;Haixiu Gao;Shenggen Fan

作者机构：Academy of Global Food Economics and PolicyChina Agricultural UniversityBeijing 100083China 

出 版 物：《Journal of Integrative Agriculture》 (农业科学学报（英文版）)

年 卷 期：2024年第23卷第8期

页      面：2842-2852页

核心收录：

学科分类：1004[医学-公共卫生与预防医学(可授医学、理学学位)] 100403[医学-营养与食品卫生学] 10[医学] 

基　　金：the National Natural Science Foundation of China(72203214 and 72061147002) China Scholarship Council(CSC)(201913043) 

主　　题：whole grains cost analysis public health life cycle assessment(LCA) carbon footprint 

摘      要：Excessive consumption of refined grains harms human health and ecosystem *** grains,as a healthy and sustainable alternative to refined grains,can benefit individual health by providing dietary fiber,B vitamins,and bioactive ***,they aid in improving the environment due to their higher extraction rate and lower carbon emission during the processing ***,few studies have attempted to evaluate the economic and social benefits of increasing the amount of whole grain in grain *** paper estimates the potential savings in healthcare costs and reduced food carbon footprints(CFs)that could result from a shift toward whole grain consumption following the Chinese Dietary Guidelines(CDG).We investigate hypothetical scenarios where a certain proportion(5–100%)of Chinese adults could increase their whole grain intakes as proposed by CDG to meet the average shortfall of 30.2 *** that case,the healthcare costs for associated diseases(e.g.,type2 diabetes mellitus(T2DM),cardiovascular disease(CVD),and colorectal cancer(CRC))are expected to reduce by a substantial amount,from USD 2.82 to 56.37 billion;the carbon emission levels are also projected to decrease by0.24–5.72 million *** study provides compelling evidence that advocating for the transition towards greater consumption of whole grain products could benefit individual health,the environment,and society,by reducing both healthcare costs and carbon emissions.