concept

Global Nutrition Report

Also known as: Global Nutrition Report, 2021 Global Nutrition Report

Facts (30)

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Health and environmental impacts of diets worldwide globalnutritionreport.org Global Nutrition Report 30 facts

claimThe 2021 Global Nutrition Report assessment of dietary risks accounts for physiological factors like age and sex, as well as geographic variation at the country level.

measurementDeaths attributable to being overweight increased from 1,030,283 in 2010 to 1,201,087 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

claimThe 2021 Global Nutrition Report states that to reduce greenhouse gas emissions sufficiently to avoid dangerous levels of global warming, it is necessary to prioritize policy initiatives aimed at reducing the amounts of animal-based foods in human diets, a change that is also warranted on health grounds.

claimThe 2021 Global Nutrition Report analysis focused on the impacts of foods on coronary heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancers, and respiratory disease.

procedureThe 2021 Global Nutrition Report assessment of environmental impacts of diets included greenhouse gas emissions, cropland use, fresh-water use, and nitrogen and phosphorus application related to fertilizers.

measurementDeaths attributable to low vegetable consumption increased from 1,490,976 in 2010 to 1,665,209 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

referenceThe 2021 Global Nutrition Report's Figure 2.3, which details deaths attributable to dietary risk factors, is based on food intake estimates from the Global Dietary Database, weight measurements from the NCD Risk Factor Collaboration, diet-disease relationships from epidemiological literature, and mortality and population estimates from the Global Burden of Disease project.

measurementDeaths attributable to high sugary drink consumption increased from 243,179 in 2010 to 291,530 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

measurementRisks related to dietary composition in the 2021 Global Nutrition Report analysis included low intake of fruits (2.8 million deaths), whole grains (2.3 million), vegetables (1.7 million), legumes (1.5 million), nuts and seeds (1.0 million), and high intake of red meat (980,000), processed meat (880,000), and sugar-sweetened beverages (290,000).

referenceThe Global Nutrition Report analysis of food demand estimates from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and a database of environmental footprints shows that dietary patterns in Northern America, Oceania, Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Asia consistently exceeded global environmental targets for greenhouse gas emissions, cropland use, freshwater use, and nitrogen and phosphorus application between 2010 and 2018.

measurementDeaths attributable to low legume consumption increased from 1,310,829 in 2010 to 1,537,388 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

perspectiveThe 2021 Global Nutrition Report asserts that policy measures are required to transform the food system toward healthy and sustainable food production by prioritizing the adoption of healthy and sustainable diets and disincentivizing the production and consumption of high-impact foods such as meat and dairy.

claimThe 2021 Global Nutrition Report analysis of diet-related non-communicable diseases (NCDs) focused on adults aged 20 and above, as these risks primarily affect that age group.

claimThe 2021 Global Nutrition Report authors produced new estimates of the health burden of poor diets by using a global comparative assessment of dietary risks with country-level detail, which combines estimates of food intake with cause-specific mortality rates.

procedureThe 2021 Global Nutrition Report authors followed a four-step procedure to select diet factors for their analysis: first, they focused on meta-analyses to minimize bias; second, they only used diet-disease associations with moderate, high, probable, or convincing evidence; third, they excluded associations that became statistically non-significant when adjusted for confounding factors; and fourth, they focused on foods rather than nutrients to avoid double-counting.

claimThe 2021 Global Nutrition Report estimate of 12 million diet-attributable deaths is comparable to the combined diet- and weight-related risk estimates of the Global Burden of Disease project, which are 7.8 million and 4.8 million attributable deaths respectively.

measurementDeaths attributable to low fruit consumption increased from 2,437,224 in 2010 to 2,824,324 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

measurementDeaths attributable to high processed meat consumption increased from 796,004 in 2010 to 883,995 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

measurementDeaths attributable to high red meat consumption increased from 827,566 in 2010 to 979,875 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

measurementDeaths attributable to being underweight increased from 953,055 in 2010 to 1,106,554 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

claimDietary patterns that align with healthy and sustainable recommendations are associated with improvements in diet-related disease mortality, nutritional adequacy, and environmental sustainability, according to research cited in the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

perspectiveThe Global Nutrition Report suggests that food-system strategies to make healthy and sustainable diets affordable for all should include full costing approaches, income support, and socioeconomic development.

measurementDeaths attributable to obesity increased from 2,430,385 in 2010 to 2,735,876 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

claimIn the 2021 Global Nutrition Report, the combined mortality risk attributed to dietary factors is less than the sum of individual risks because individuals can be exposed to multiple risks, but mortality is ascribed to only one risk and cause.

measurementRisks related to total energy intake and body weight in the 2021 Global Nutrition Report analysis included obesity (2.7 million deaths), overweight (1.2 million), and underweight (1.1 million).

referenceThe Global Nutrition Report 2021 analysis includes diet-disease associations for low intake of fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts/seeds, and whole grains, as well as for high intake of red meat, processed meat, and sugary drinks.

measurementIn the 2021 Global Nutrition Report analysis, 65% (9.3 million) of avoidable deaths were due to risks related to dietary composition, while 35% (5.0 million) were due to risks related to total energy intake and body weight.

measurementDeaths attributable to low nut and seed consumption decreased from 1,036,934 in 2010 to 1,032,341 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.

claimThe Global Nutrition Report analysis of regional diets in 2010 and 2018 indicates that no region is on track to meet global environmental targets related to the food system.

measurementDeaths attributable to low whole grain consumption increased from 1,923,145 in 2010 to 2,272,688 in 2018, according to the 2021 Global Nutrition Report.