Abstract
Despite the recognized advantages of Mediterranean Diet (MD), the adherence to it decreased with modern lifestyle, where the time dedicated to acquisition, preparation/confection of food and meals diminished. At the same time, Mediterranean regions face a growth in the levels of non-communicable diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension, sometimes together with undernutrition that affects other parts of the population. This chapter make a presentation about MD as a sustainable food system, essential to promote food security, at the same time that the methods of food production and consumption must respect the environment, maintain biodiversity, and economic society valorisation. Also, it shows MD associated with several factors such as gender, marital status, education level, lifestyle, and body weight. Maintaining the traditional MD pattern is crucial for public health, particularly in pandemic contexts such as COVID-19 where it shows the opportunity and relevance of adopt and promote MD as a healthy and sustainable diet.
TopIntroduction
The constant increase in world population forces agricultural production to accompany this growth, to satisfy the corresponding needs in food and animal feed. However, the current production systems, most of them intensive, must be transformed to guarantee the optimization of the use of resources and the preservation of the planet.
The accentuated climate changes, characterized by extreme and unpredictable weather events oblige the adoption of sustainable food production and consumption patterns. The impacts of climate change on agriculture are felt in the decrease in plant growth, in increasing spread of pests and pathogens and in the change in the interactions between the different components of agro-ecosystems (Mall et al., 2017; Smith and Almaraz, 2004). This urgency in implementing sustainable production systems must be associated with changes in consumption behavior, lifestyles and personal choices, which are strongly influenced by cultural values shared by societies (Lucas, 2006). Although there are few studies that explore the differences in individual patterns of food and energy intake between urban and rural areas and between more and less developed countries (Kosaka et al., 2018), there is evidence in the literature that, while in large urban centers, energy intake can be excessive, in rural areas, especially in the case of poorer communities, energy and protein can be in deficit (Mayén et al., 2014). On the other hand, poor people living in urban areas may have a diet based on cheap energy, provided mainly by foods rich in sugar, salt and fat and with a deficient consumption of vegetables, fruits and legumes. Thus, preventing and controlling diseases and reducing hunger and social inequalities in food intake should be considered in the context of a changing planet (Mayén et al., 2014).
In September 2015, the member countries of the United Nations signed the agenda 2030, in which 17 objectives (Sustainable Development Goals – SDGs) were considered to achieve a sustainable development, in the different fields, until 2030 (UN, na; Pradhan et al., 2017; Caiado et al., 2018; Bennich et al., 2020). Among these objectives, 3 are directly linked with food production and consumption: SDG 2 – Zero hunger; SDG 3 - Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages; and SDG 12 - Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns. Altogether, these goals focus the need of achieving sustainable and responsible food systems, able to feed the world population, while guarantee the adequate input of macro- and micronutrients for all, keeping biodiversity and improving well-being and economic subsistence of societies
It is known that in rich countries, most of the resources and budget allocated to health are used to treat chronic diseases, mainly related with bad eating habits. In total, it is estimated that they contribute to about 71% of all deaths, and that most of them would be avoidable by changing lifestyles. Recent studies indicate that, if the trend in the way food is consumed continues, and if there is no intervention in eating habits and lifestyles, in 2050 food availability will suffer a reduction of around 3.2% per person, with reductions of 4,0% in the consumption of fruits and vegetables, which will result in a decrease of about 28% in the ability to prevent associated deaths and excess weight (Springmann et al., 2016).
Sustainable diets are understood to be those with a low environmental impact, which contribute to food and nutritional security and to the healthy life of present and future generations. Sustainable diets protect and respect biodiversity and ecosystems, optimizing the use of natural and human resources. Moreover, these are diets which are culturally accepted, accessible, economically fair and affordable, nutritionally balanced, safe and healthy (Burlingame and Dernini, 2011).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Food Diseases: Diseases associated with food, including obesity, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, and some types of cancer and also hunger, which affect more than 820 million people in the world.
Food Security: As defined by the United Nations' Committee on World Food Security, means that all people, at all times, have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their food preferences and dietary needs for an active and healthy life.
Healthy Food: A food that satisfactorily to affect beneficially body functions, beyond adequate nutritional effects, in a way which is relevant to either the state of well-being and health or the reduction of the risk of a disease.
Local Foods: Foods that have a specific geographical proximity provenance and must be market in shorts circuits, contributing for the sustainable development.
Sustainable Production and Consumption: Is about doing more and better with less. It is also about decoupling economic growth from environmental degradation, increasing resource efficiency, and promoting sustainable lifestyles. They can also contribute substantially to poverty alleviation and the transition towards low-carbon and green economies.
COVID-19 Pandemic: It is an infectious disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus which spread in an ongoing global pandemic.
Mediterranean Diet: It can be described as a dietary pattern characterized by a) olive oil as the main source of dietary fat, b) high intake of plant foods (vegetables, fruits, whole cereals, potatoes, legumes, nuts and seeds), c) low to moderate amounts of animal foods (dairy products, fish, poultry, red meat and eggs), and d) wine in moderation within meals. Although this definition is broadly accepted, it is noteworthy that the MD has variants depending on the characteristics of each Mediterranean population, which actually makes it difficult to establish a unique universal definition.