5 ways reducing your carbon footprint can benefit your health

Reducing your carbon footprint is one way you can make Earth a better place to live in.

Did you know that reducing your carbon footprint benefits not just your environment but you as well?

What is carbon footprint?

Your carbon footprint is measured by the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere. It can refer to the actions of a person, a family, an event, organisation or even a whole country.

Usually, carbon footprint is measured by the tons of carbon dioxide emitted in a year. Greenhouse gases primarily consist of carbon dioxide but can include methane, nitrous oxide and other gases.

Why does it matter?

An increase in greenhouse gases emitted has resulted in rising sea levels and global warming. If climate change increases at this rate, it is estimated that one-quarter of Earth’s species is headed toward extinction in 40 years.

As an individual, the bulk of your carbon footprint comes mostly from transportation, housing and food. But, did you know that leading a healthier lifestyle naturally reduces your carbon footprint? Here are 5 easy ways how.

5 ways you can reduce carbon footprint

1. Increase footsteps, decrease carbon footprint

One of the simplest ways to reduce carbon footprint is to reduce vehicular emissions. Stop taking the car where possible, take public transport such as the train or bus, and even consider cycling or walking.

When you increase the number of footsteps, you don’t only decrease your carbon footprint but condition your body to build stronger muscles and increase your heart rate and lung capacity.

2. Eat less meat and cook at home more often

Consuming less meat is said to reduce your carbon footprint because the production of red meat has a higher carbon footprint than fruits and vegetables.

Going on a meatless diet or even cutting down on meat intake also holds several health benefits like reducing the risk of cancer, lowering your cholesterol and helping with weight loss.

Preparing your own meals at home can reduce your carbon footprint as you use less plastic from takeaway containers. On top of that, home-cooked meals help you better portion your meals for lower food wastage, as well as control the amount of salt and oil added into your food.

These factors not only reduce the carbon footprint of your meals but also aid you in eating more healthily.

3. Choose plain water over soft drinks

Apart from meat, switching your regular soft drinks to water is one simple and healthy step you can take.

Consuming tap water has a lower carbon footprint than consuming soft drinks due to emissions involved in the transportation and packaging of soft drinks.

Doing this can also reduce your risk of diabetes, osteoporosis and kidney stones.

4. Switch to renewables or energy-saving appliances

Switch to renewables or energy-savings appliances

Changing to energy-efficient appliances reduces the carbon footprint at home and helps you to save cost in the long-run.

Electronic devices tend to draw energy even when fully charged therefore it is better to unplug any fully charged devices to cut down on wasted energy.

Line-drying or drying your clothes on a bamboo pole instead of using a dryer is another way to reduce the amount of carbon footprint produced in the household. Not only is it more sustainable, it even encourages you to get moving about the household if you have the tendency to laze around once you’re home.

5. Stay motivated with lifestyle apps

Tracking your carbon footprint is rewarding when you know that it benefits your health as well.

Healthy living and reducing your carbon footprint becomes extra fun when you pair it with lifestyle apps like GETGREAT, which rewards you for the steps you walked. With in-app feature like special quests, which you can also take part in from time to time, reducing your carbon footprint and living a healthier lifestyle becomes more achievable and fun.

Use apps like GETGREAT to monitor your sleep hours and earn rewards.

In-app features like FitAge help you track your physical activity (number of steps taken), amount of rest (number of hours of sleep) and cardiovascular fitness (resting heart rate). You can pair the app with a wearable to help you easily monitor and tweak your lifestyle habits to better support quality sleep.