Air seems to battle its way to her lungs as she chokes and struggles for breath, her inhaler slowly easing her pain as the pollution around her limits her air supply. The pollution that has invaded so much of the planet may seem to only affect the environment’s health, but it can also have devastating effects on the well-being of humans.
The increase in prevalence and severity of asthma over the past twenty years as well as results from epidemiological studies in the environment all suggest that exposures such as air pollution are a significant part of the development of this disease.

The increase in prevalence and severity of asthma has grown too quickly to be the result of genetic changes in the population, according to the World Health Organization. Reducing air pollution in the environment would substantially help those with lung diseases such as asthma live healthier lives.

Cutting down on one’s consumption of beef can also radically improve the environment over time. The amount of methane each cow produces harms the environment immensely — not to mention how much water, grain, and carbon dioxide they consume. Beef, on average, uses up to 160 times more land and produces 11 times more greenhouse gases per calorie when compared to potatoes, wheat, and rice, according to Damian Carrington from The Guardian. Finding alternate sources of protein during lunch instead of eating meat can radically reduce these negative effects.

Junior Moira McCarthy is passionate about helping the environment and also keeping herself healthy as a result.

“Be willing to try some of the salads, be open to not having meat for lunch every day, and find other sources for protein…There are plenty of other protein options at lunch, you just have to look for them. [There’s] tofu, hummus, and bean salads,” McCarthy said.

Besides posing a risk to the environment, red meat has proven to wreak havoc on one’s personal health. Red meat (pork, beef, lamb, etc.) has been linked to an increased risk for cancer, especially colorectal cancer, by agencies such as the The American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Health Organization.

The heme form of iron present in red meat can harm the lining of the colon. The production of N-nitroso compounds, which are cancer-causing agents, in the gut also increases with the ingestion of red meat. The high levels of fat present in red meat can also lead to heart disease and obesity.

This is not to say that students shouldn’t be eating red meat at all; the iron and protein it provides is quite valuable. However, research shows that switching to a plant-based diet, where one’s meal is centered around vegetables rather than meat, is far better for one’s health.

Senior Willa Grinsfelder has also seen that paying attention to the food she eats and her fossil fuel usage helps to keep both her and the environment healthy.

“I camp, and most of my activities in the summer are outside, [so] I’m usually packing a lunch, or packing food on a trail; it makes me more conscious of what I’m eating during the day,” she said.

Grinsfelder believes that walking or biking to school, for students who live closer, would help immensely with their personal carbon footprint. Although she usually is only able to bike during the summer, Grinsfelder has seen a few faculty members who bike regularly to school. She’s also seen students try to reduce waste by using mugs instead of the paper cups provided at school. However, she also sees that some of the snacks available during x-period are especially harmful.

“[There are] less health benefits and more waste – like Doritos,” Grinsfelder said.

Doritos harm the environment by creating more plastic waste that can’t be composted, while also hurting one’s body because of their high fat content and lack of nutrients. Although Grinsfelder believes that there should be more work and awareness around recycling and reducing waste at school, sophomore Emilia Hoppe has also seen students who try to help out.

“A out of a reusable water bottle…[that way], I drink a lot more water; it’s good to be hydrated and I’m also creating less waste,” she said.

It may seem that helping out the environment and keeping one’s body healthy can only be done through drastic measures, but this is not the case – it can often be enjoyable.
Mental health and focus can also be improved by spending more time around nature, trees and wildlife that also help the environment function sustainably. A study was conducted by Gregory Bratman, from the Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources at Stanford University, to look at the neurological mechanisms that affect one’s brain when they’re outside in nature.

An increase in negative thoughts, or brooding, which is often thought to be a precursor to depression, is strongly associated with activity in the subgenual prefrontal cortex in the brain.

The people involved in the study who walked by a highway maintained high levels of blood flow, or activity to their subgenual prefrontal cortex, and their level of negative thoughts also were unchanged. However, the people who walked along quiet, tree-lined paths had small, but important changes in their mental health; they weren’t thinking as negatively as before. They had less activity in their subgenual prefrontal cortex. These results strongly suggest that being around natural environments helps one’s mental health and moods.

Without preserving the environment in all it’s green glory, one can not enjoy the physical and mental benefits of being around it.