David Jenkins Research

Anna Lappé’s book, Diet for a Hot Planet, discusses the impact that meat consumption has on the planet and our environment. It discusses how the global food system is a major contributor to climate change, producing as much as one-third of greenhouse gas emissions. She writes about how the way we farm, what we eat, and how our food gets to our tables all

To determine the level of my fiber intake from a 3 day sample of my diet, I performed a Prospective Diet Analysis. On average, I consumed 22.3 grams of fiber, just missing the recommendation of 25 grams. Coherent to the findings of the related studies, my cholesterol intake decreased and by the third day totaled 124.5 mg, which relates to 42% of the Daily Recommended Intake of 300 mg.

In chapter 3 Dr. Moalem talks about how cholesterol rises too. Like when you consume alcohol, your body detoxifies it and then extracts calories from it. It's a difficult process that involves many different enzymes and a lot of organs, although most of the process takes place in the liver. First, an enzyme called alcohol dehydrogenase converts the alcohol into another chemical called acetaldehyde; another enzyme—cleverly called acetaldehyde dehydrogenase—converts the acetaldehyde into acetate. And a third enzyme converts

Instead of dieting, people should look to maintain a healthy lifestyle. In an effort to do so, I have turned to a plant based diet. With new studies informing the public about the dangers of red meat as a carcinogen and its link to heart disease, I felt it was best to leave the burgers behind. While not wholly vegan, I no longer consume eggs, dairy, honey, and red meat and instead have replaced these animal products with leafy greens, fiber rich berries, and whole wheat pasta. This transition has not been solely about health, however, as, after taking an Environmental Science course, I learned about the damaging environmental impacts of the meat and dairy industries. In the United States, agriculture accounts for 80% of our water usage -- and bovine meat is the largest offender, using 48x more water than vegetables. Land usage for livestock is another massive problem and as the consumer demands for animal products increases, our available land is slowly eaten away at.

Dairy should not be a primary food group on the dietary guidelines set by the government because of its many negative effects on human health (given that people care about their health and the health of those around them). Dairy and other animal products are the only food sources which contain cholesterol. Arguments have been made saying that humans need to consume cholesterol in order to have a healthy balance of fats; these arguments fail to acknowledge that our bodies naturally produce all the cholesterol that it needs. And many studies have been conducted to support the theory that consumption of dietary cholesterol overloads arteries and can cause heart disease, artery disease, as well as sudden heart attacks. The Department of Community Health and Preventative Medicine at Northwestern University Medical School worked to interpret an international study based on data from the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health Organization. The overall conclusion was that “…dietary cholesterol levels are consistently related to CHD (coronary heart disease) mortality rates” (Stamler). A study conducted by Lena Ohlsson at the Laboratory of Gastroenterology and Nutrition within the prestigious Lund University in Sweden also linked dietary cholesterol and milk fat with artery disease and other metabolic disorders. In short, the abstract of her lab report said that low-density lipoprotein (LDL)—“bad” cholesterol—was found to be directly associated with coronary artery

The Omnivore’s Dilemma, written by Michael Pollan, gives light to the question, “What should we have for dinner?” that he thinks Americans today cannot answer simply due to the fact that there are too many food options. This book serves as an eye-opener to challenge readers to be more aware and accountable of what is consumed daily. In order to understand fully where our food comes from, we must follow it back to the very beginning. Pollan goes on to discuss three different modern food chains in which we get our food: the industrial, the organic, and the hunter-gatherer. By tracing our food back to the beginning, we can understand that most of the nutritional and health problems America is going through today can be found on the farms that make our food and the government that can decide what happens. America deals with many food related illness such as, heart disease, obesity, and type II diabetes. Majority of a human and animals diet consists of being corn-fed leading to a high cause of obesity in the United States these are just some of the many diseases that come with over processed foods and diets we are unaware of. In this study, we will highlight the environmental and health issues and impacts related with modern agriculture and how these systems can be made more sustainable.

A decrease of candy bars for snack and changing it to eating fruits instead as the fiber from the fruit benefits to reduce LDL levels

Spending much of her childhood in the German Coast of Acadiana, Darleen Jenkins holds on tightly to her family traditions. Moving from Luling to Houma, down to Dularge and back up to Houma again, she has been able to spot differences in the regions’ foods based on both time and place. She reminisces fondly of times when her family came together to share in meals and memories. Speaking with her one couldn’t help but to want to hear more about her childhood and transitions through adulthood.

Brought up in the southern of China, I often heard about that people from there “eat anything with four limbs except tables, anything that flies except aero planes, and anything that swims except ships”. Nevertheless, I eat more fruit, vegetables, nuts, and whole grains but less meat to make careful choices for environmental protection. Similarly, Kathy Freston argues that animal agriculture is one of the top contributors to global warming. In her Huffington Post selection “Vegetarian Is the New Prius,” Freston lists how many emissions of greenhouse gases people make when they eat meat and illustrates the consumption of tree in animal agriculture. She effectively convinces her audiences that the livestock results in the most serious environmental problems and encourages people to lead a greener diet to protect our environment. However, ardent craving, poor health, and perpetual hassle and cost prevent all Americans from being vegetarian.

High cholesterol is one of the most common diseases that occur in today's society. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 71 million American adults have high LDL "bad" cholesterol. When cholesterol levels are normal, they normally do not harm the body since cholesterol can be beneficial to the body. However, if excess amounts of cholesterol are in the body, it can become a threat. "Cholesterol is a waxy substance that plays an important role in building cell membranes and sex hormones" (Overview). The certain types of food you consume on a daily basis may affect the cholesterol levels in your blood. There are two types of cholesterol, which is your HDL (high density lipoprotein), "good", cholesterol, and your LDL (low density lipoprotein), which are the "bad" cholesterol. It is critical that an individual maintains his or her cholesterol levels because he or she can increase their risk of cardiovascular disease. LDLs are known to carry cholesterol into your arteries and clog them, which can cause strokes and heart attacks. On the other hand, HDL, help eliminate cholesterol from the arterial vessels and transport it to the liver, which is then defecated with body waste. According to Sroda, an individual's total cholesterol should be less than 200, LDL levels should be less than 130,

It is no secret that meat plays an enormous role in the diet and culture of many countries. Each year, approximately 56 billion land animals are raised and killed worldwide for human consumption (Edwards). By 2050, this figure is predicted to double, making animal production growth rate higher than any other agricultural sub sector in the developed world. Over the last decade, small and medium livestock farms have been replaced by large industrialized factory farms, raising large numbers of livestock indoors in conditions intended to maximize production at minimal cost (Edwards). These sentient beings suffer from intense confinement and as research reveals, we are being forced to either change our ways or face devastating consequences as discussed in this paper. Meat, egg, and milk production are not only focused on the slaughtering of farm animals, but the animal agriculture sector also includes feed grain production and energy expenditures to transport feed, live animals, and animal products, which requires large amounts of

David Jenkins, a Christian Science writer, believes that God created planet Earth with a climate plan in mind. He references from the Bible to support his claims. Jenkins has a thought that just because God made something does not mean it was meant to be used up by man, but maybe to remain where it was originally placed. He explains that the high use of coal by people seems to be what is causing the increase in global temperatures and we need to reduce our need for fossil fuels by finding better alternatives to energy. Jenkins acknowledges that other parts of life are also being affected by such high temperatures like food shortages and water droughts. He believes that religion and nature go hand in hand to make the world work. Mr. Jenkins believes we need to respect God’s design for our planet and take into consideration how it was intended to be treated.

While all of us relatively understand how driving cars, leaving the lights on, or using too much water can affect the environment, there is one massive human activity that is frequently overlooked—eating. From growing, to processing, to distributing, and finally consuming, our agricultural system uses an immense portion of our planet’s limited resources and emits large amounts of greenhouse gases that have drastic effects on the environment. Because of this, it is imperative to understand the environmental impacts of the type of foods that we choose to include in our diets. While much of today’s population is heavily reliant on animal products, it is evident that a meat-based diet is not environmentally sustainable; on the other hand, a plant-based diet is much more environmentally friendly in terms of the amount of grain, water, and

These are two extremes, but people who live in the developed world on average still eat twice as much meat compared to people living in developing countries. And while people in developing countries might consume less meat and dairy now, growing populations and wealth will strongly increase their consumption. This will have negative impacts on the environment - and on ourselves. More than 25% of climate gases that contribute to climate change are associated with our food. This is also expected to increase over the next decades. But our diets are not only unsustainable, they are also unhealthy leading to malnourishment and obesity.

Consumption of meat by humans creates several problems. First and foremost, raising animals for food compromises the environment. For example, it takes a large amount of natural resources to sustain the meat industry. The use of water, land, and food to raise animals for human consumption is not an efficient use of our limited resources. In contrast, it is more efficient to feed humans directly than to use land, food, and water to feed animals to be used as food. There are shortages of fertile land, clean water, and food in several third world countries. Many of these countries’ resources are allocated to produce feed for animals in developed countries around the world. As a result, the citizens of these countries are stricken with water and food shortages, while their crops are feeding cattle from across the globe. However, this problem can be solved by adopting a vegan diet. The vegan diet will allow a more efficient use of resources that in turn can be used to feed starving men, women, and children throughout the world. Consequently, more people in the world could be fed if the land used to grow feed for animals was used to grow food for humans.