And the difference in wages between male and female cops
Ever felt a creeping aversion towards animal products after giving them up for a few weeks? If so, you are probably not alone. Indeed, for some time now experts have suspected that abstaining from meat consumption can cause people to develop "meat disgust."
According to the results of recent studies, there may be something to it; the consequences of meat abstinence do appear to be psychological as well as environmental.
Curious? Check out this gallery to find out more.
The heavy carbon footprint of the meat industry is well documented. Indeed, animal products are responsible for 57% of global food-related emissions.
Plant-based products, by contrast, only contribute to 29% of the total emissions. And this is despite the fact that animals provide less than 20% of the world’s total energy from food.
Giving up meat, therefore, is one of the most impactful steps you can take if you are looking to reduce the carbon footprint of your diet.
According to new research, however, refraining from eating meat could also have consequences that go far beyond helping the planet.
The term is exactly what it says on the tin: that feeling of disgust some people experience when they think about eating, or are made to eat, meat.
Thanks to one small, independent study in the UK, however, scientists now have concrete (albeit limited) evidence that this phenomenon exists.
Indeed, there are recent studies that suggest abstinence from meat can increase feelings of what experts are referring to as "meat disgust."
The idea that abstaining from animal products increases this aversion is nothing new. In fact, it has been reported anecdotally ever since the dawn of vegetarianism.
The study looked at 40 participants who normally ate meat and who reduced their consumption over the month of January.
There was also another study, carried out at the University of Exeter, that found a connection between reduced meat consumption and meat aversion. This study, which was larger and carried out over six months, found that 74% of vegetarians were classified as "meat disgusted."
It found that the more meat the participants managed to cut out over the course of the month, the more their meat disgust grew.
Indeed, by the end of the month, 28 out of the 40 participants had reported an increase in their feelings of meat disgust.
It is important to note that participants were not asked why they chose to give up meat. Therefore, it is possible they had an existing aversion.
Research into the environmental impact of various diets is also ongoing, and in 2023 a research team at the University of Oxford published a landmark study.
In fact, this research is in its infancy in general. However, experts believe this is an interesting area of social science research that warrants further investigation.
The study looked at 55,000 people in the UK who followed different diets; there were large numbers of vegetarians and vegans included in the mix.
The study was the first of its kind, in the sense that it looked at the relationship between diet and a range of environmental measures, rather than just carbon emissions.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the study found that the vegan diet had the lowest carbon emissions: just 25% of the emissions produced by a diet that includes more than 100 g of meat per day.
This held true, even when the air miles and the (not inconsiderable) resources used to produce plant-based ingredients were taken into account.
The study also found that, for those people who were not vegan or vegetarian, simply eating less meat had a positive impact on emissions.
According to one BBC article, if big meat-eaters in the UK were to cut at least some of the meat out of their diet, it would be akin to taking eight million cars off the road!
The research suggests that if these reductions were to be made across the population, the impact would be enormous.
Reducing your daily meat intake could either mean eating smaller portions, or incorporating fewer meat meals into your daily diet.
One country going against the grain is Denmark, where the government policy is to encourage plant-based foods and cut back on meat.
At the moment, however, like in so many other countries across the world, there is very little political appetite to introduce a robust meat-reduction policy.
Beef and lamb, for example, have a much higher carbon footprint than chicken and turkey, because they naturally produce the potent greenhouse gas methane.
The scientists behind these studies in the UK are hopeful that, someday soon, their findings may be used to inform public policy.
In addition to reducing meat intake, studies show that the type of meat and animal products you eat make a difference, too.
For the time being, however, the vast majority of governments are not prioritizing this issue, not least because there appears to be little public support.
Sources: (BBC)
See also: The most consumed meats by country
Meat disgust: the psychological effects of cutting out meat
Introducing the "meat disgust" phenomenon
LIFESTYLE Diet
Ever felt a creeping aversion towards animal products after giving them up for a few weeks? If so, you are probably not alone. Indeed, for some time now experts have suspected that abstaining from meat consumption can cause people to develop "meat disgust."
According to the results of recent studies, there may be something to it; the consequences of meat abstinence do appear to be psychological as well as environmental.
Curious? Check out this gallery to find out more.