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The Great Nutrient Collapse
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The Great Nutrient Collapse

The atmosphere is literally changing the food we eat, for the worse. And almost nobody is paying attention.

Helena Bottemiller Evich
Politico Magazine, 2017
References: Myers et al. (2014) , Medek et al. (2017) , Myers et al. (2015) , Loladze (2014) , Davis et al. (2004)
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Qualities

  • Scientific
  • Eye Opening
  • Hot Topic

Recommendation

Rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are not only causing global warming, they are actively harming the Earth’s food supply by depleting the nutrients in plants. Politico Pro agriculture reporter Helena Bottemiller Evich digs deep to explain how plants are in danger of becoming junk food. The air’s elevated levels of carbon dioxide are depleting crops’ minerals and vitamins and increasing their carbohydrate content. getAbstract recommends this article to people concerned about the falling nutritional content of the food on their plates.

Take-Aways

  • “The atmosphere is literally changing the food we eat for the worse.”
  • Plants that get excess light and carbon dioxide (CO2) grow faster than crops that don’t. These plants tend to have more carbohydrates and sugar and fewer vitamins and minerals.
  • Since 1950, the protein, calcium, iron and vitamin C content in many food crops – including rice, wheat and corn – has been decreasing significantly.

About the Author

Helena Bottemiller Evich, a senior food and agriculture reporter for Politico Pro, has covered Congress, the US Food and Drug Administration and the US Department of Agriculture.

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