Skip that third helping of roast beef, save the planet and do your heart a favour at the same time.

That's the advice of Alan Dangour of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and colleagues who explored the livestock industry's potential to help the UK halve its carbon emissions by 2030, relative to 1990 levels, and the knock-on effect on the nation's health.

They found that the industry could slash its emissions, but only if the livestock the UK produces, and the meat the nation consumes, drops by 30 per cent. Farms must also optimise their energy efficiency by, for example, capturing carbon in manure.

The health pay-off would be considerable: 18,000 fewer people would die prematurely in the UK each year from heart attacks – a reduction of 17 per cent – as they would eat less of the saturated fats found in meat.

The effect would not be limited to rich nations. The team found that Brazil could achieve the same health benefits. "We're not saying go vegetarian, we're saying reduce how much livestock produce you consume," says Dangour. The savings could be even higher if reduced death rates from colorectal cancer and obesity had been included, he adds.

Agronomist Kenneth Cassman of the University of Nebraska warns that cutting production in one region can boost it elsewhere, causing a rise in global emissions. "Reducing production of livestock products in a developed country like the UK does little to influence global trends in production and consumption where most of the increase in demand between now and 2050 will come from developing countries," he says.

Journal reference: The Lancet, DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(09)61753-0

Read more articles like this one at New Scientist.

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Cows and Ours Health
written by Ralph Sabean, November 30, 2009

I think all meat should be eaten at least 30 to 50% less because no matter what they say we are being killed by cows, pigs & Chickens and its all because of what they are feeding the livestock.

They started feeding Chickens remains of dead chickens and still do and they got chicken flu which we ended up getting and killing many.
They started feeding pigs meat, probably their own remains or remains of other livestock so they got swine flu and now we get swine flu.

They fed cows their own remains or some other types of waste meat and they got Mad Cow disease. I wonder what kind of flu we got from that because it killed the cows.

What other ails have mankind wrought? Did they actually destroy all the chickens with chicken flu or are we now this winter eating them. Have you noticed there are a lot of chickens being brought in from some where and selling really cheap.How easy it would be to sneak in a few at a time in amongst the good ones but none are good anyway because many are using chicken remains as supplement food right now today and every day.

Are they doing the same with pigs? Is it swine flu or poisoned pork. Why do some even healthy die. Could it be that the ones who ate the most contaminated pork die no matter how heathy. The vaccine or could it be called antidote for poison pork was found way too quickly.

My opinion is to stop eating meat unless it is home grown and the feed is not spiked with meat byproducts and good health too you!

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written by Fran Tracy, November 30, 2009

I agree we need to know how our meet is farmed and get meet not fed animal biproducts but home grown meat is good and it is good for you. All thign must be taken in moderation and not be a glutton. If people will get more exercise and eat reasonably, you can eat what ever you want.
Fran

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