By Stuti Mishra

Copyright independent

People should eat more fruit, vegetables and wholegrains and cut back on red meat and sugary drinks to cut their risk of type 2 diabetes – and help save the planet in the process, according to new research.

Scientists tracked the eating habits of over 23,000 people in the UK over two decades, and found that the people most closely following a plant-based diet had a 32 per cent lower incidence of type 2 diabetes than those with the least adherence. The same group had 18 per cent lower greenhouse gas emissions linked to their diets.

The approach studied by researchers, known as the planetary health diet, was first set out by the EAT-Lancet Commission in 2019 as a model that could feed a growing global population without exhausting ecosystems. The diet is considered flexitarian as it does not remove animal products entirely, but increases the proportion of plant-based products consumed.

“Our motivation for this study was to address the limited evidence regarding the association between the planetary health diet and both type 2 diabetes incidence and greenhouse gas emissions in a European population,” said Dr Solomon Sowah, lead author of the study from the MRC Epidemiology Unit at the University of Cambridge.

“We found that the planetary health diet containing higher amounts of wholegrains, fruits and vegetables, and lower amounts of red and processed meat and sugary drinks was associated with lower type 2 diabetes incidence and lower diet-related greenhouse gas emissions.”

According to researchers, half your meal should consist of vegetables and fruits while the remainder is filled with whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds, and a small portion of dairy, fish and poultry. The diet allows limited red meat and added sugar.

High fibre foods, whole grains, and unsaturated plant oils help lower cholesterol, blood pressure, and inflammation.

Cases of type 2 diabetes are rapidly increasing and already affect over 500 million adults worldwide. People with type 2 diabetes are at increased risk for heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, nerve damage, vision loss, poor wound healing, and dementia.

At the same time, food systems, especially the beef and pork industries, are responsible for around a third of all greenhouse gas emissions. Researchers say dietary change is a crucial part of efforts to tackle global heating.

“These findings provide support for the potential of the planetary health diet to make a meaningful contribution to help prevent type 2 diabetes,” senior study author professor Nita Forouhi said.

“What’s more is that eating in line with the planetary health diet is also linked with a lower environmental impact. So, it offers a win-win to potentially help improve both human and planetary health. Action will be needed from all players, including individuals and policymakers to enable food consumption aligned with this dietary approach.”

Earlier this year, a study published in Nature found that including more plant-based foods helped improve metabolism.

The idea of aligning public health and climate goals through diet is gaining traction but faces pushback as well. Meat and dairy remain staples in many countries, including the UK, where government proposals to nudge people towards eating less meat were left out of the National Food Strategy white paper.

But several countries are now taking the lead to encourage healthier diets. In 2024, the German Nutrition Society published new guidelines recommending that a “healthy and environmentally friendly diet” consist of at least 75 per cent plant-based foods and less dairy and meat products.

In January 2021, Denmark’s official dietary guidelines were revised to include climate-friendly advice for the first time, asking people to eat more legumes, vegetables and fruit and reduce meat consumption.

Research shows that a shift to a plant-based diet could be transformative for our planet. A 2020 analysis in Nature Sustainability estimated that widespread adoption of plant-based diets in high-income countries could reduce food-related emissions by up to 70 per cent.

Other studies suggest that moving away from heavy meat consumption could free up land for reforestation and biodiversity restoration.

Research shows that animal products use 83 per cent of farmland despite providing just 18 per cent of calories.