Sustainable Food Consumption

Food represents one of the greatest health and environmental challenges of the 21st century. Consuming less of the most environmentally damaging foods, such as meat, is considered an effective method to reduce food-related greenhouse gas emissions. The aim of these N-of-1 FOOD SWAP intervention studies is to investigate whether and which physiological, psychological and environmental factors, at an individual level, modify the adoption and adherence of food swaps aiming to reduce the intake of red meat and replace this with fish or plant-based foods, in young adults. The series of N-of-1 studies will also assess whether an 8-week food swap intervention will improve general health markers such as blood pressure, plasma lipids and glucose, and blood/urinary metabotype. This approach will provide insight into physiological, behavioural and environmental factors that can help explain individual fluctuations in adherence and physiological outcomes common in nutrition studies. In the future, this should enable us to tailor how we deliver effective individualised interventions and better consider and control for factors affecting adherence and response to dietary interventions.