Assessment of Mongolian dietary intake for planetary and human health

Healthy diets that consider environmental pressures are required to meet sustainable development goals in Mongolia. This study aimed to clarify the extent of planetary and human health on Mongolian dietary intake.

The intake of eight food groups (g/day) was investigated using the national database of the Household socio-economic survey (HSES) 2019 in Mongolia. The boundary intake of the Planetary health diet (PHD) proposed by the EAT-Lancet Commission was considered 100% adequate. The adequacy (%) of food groups in the HSES were calculated in two areas (urban and rural), during the two seasons (cold and warm), and the total by each boundary of the PHD. The differences between the recommended dietary intake (RDI) in Mongolia and the PHD were also investigated in the same manner.

The adequacy of red meat (i.e., beef, mutton, and horsemeat) in whole areas of Mongolia indicated more than 17 times higher intake (1,738%) than the PHD. The adequacy of vegetables (20%) and fruits (8%) in Mongolia indicated an intake shortage compared to the PHD. These discrepancies in dietary adequacy were greater in rural areas and during the cold seasons than in urban areas and during the warm seasons, respectively. The animal-based protein sources, especially red meat (1,091%), in the RDI of Mongolia were higher than those in the PHD.

This study found a highly excessive intake of red meat and a low intake of vegetables and fruits compared with the PHD among Mongolian people, especially in rural areas and during the cold seasons. The limited diversity of food in severe geographic conditions, poor accessibility of food retailers, and insufficient nutrition education may have led to these results. Therefore, improvements in the food environment and nutritional education are required.