An LCA approach to the Environmental Impact of Overweight and Obesity

The current trend of the overweight and obese fraction of population is widely recognized as a severe individual and social problem in wealthy countries. Furthermore, the associated threaten to health heavily impact on economics of national healthcare systems. Though medical, social and economic consequences of overweight have been extensively studied, the pressure on the environment created by the excessive consumption of food is frequently neglected. The present contribution explores the use of an LCA approach to the quantification of the direct environmental impact of population overweight. A streamlined LCA of the overweight generated in consumers is presented. The assessment yields a preliminary footprint of the body overweight in terms of environmental indicators, that cast the basis for future and more detailed applications.