Taking Care of the Environment Means Taking Care of Ourselves

By Meredith Fucci, BCAGlobal Contributing Blog Writer

“You are what you eat.” Although the phrase seems childish when taken literally, the sentiment behind it remains true and deeply relevant. The types and quantities of vitamins and minerals in food determine a myriad of bodily functions. These nutrients are responsible for building bone and muscle, capturing and using energy, and healing and defending the body from infections (Nguyen, 2014). Therefore, poor diets correlate to chronic illnesses because the body is unable to function as well without vitamins and minerals found in foods such as fruits and vegetables. Chronic diseases – ongoing and generally incurable illnesses or conditions – account for 70% of all deaths globally, and many of them, such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, and hypertension, are related to poor diet (Gropper, 2023). While traditional and Indigenous medicines and practices have been practiced since immemorial, the Western world is catching up to the value of approaching health holistically (Whatley, 2024). Instead of prescribing medications to treat chronic issues, which are often costly and treat symptoms rather than the root cause, the “Food is Medicine” philosophy advocates for eating nutritious food to prevent, manage, and treat chronic diseases. In comparison to pharmaceuticals, which may mimic a hormone, a nutritious diet strengthens the body as a whole. Just as “Food is Medicine” demonstrates the value of holistic treatment and expanding our mindset to include systems, the same mindset must be applied to our food systems and the overall environment. Therefore, if we need vitamins and nutrients from a well-balanced diet, how do plants absorb and utilize nutrients? Through their symbiotic relationship with fungi.

Partnering with Fungi

Fungi are critical to any ecosystem because they decompose organic and inorganic matter into vitamins and minerals to be accessible to plants. In other words, one of fungi’s roles is to turn death into life again. Plants alone cannot access the nutrients in the soil as successfully as when they form a symbiotic relationship with fungi. Almost “90% of land plants form symbiotic relationships with some of these beneficial microbes, including most agricultural crops” (Howard, 2020). Through what is referred to as the mycelium network – interconnected, root-like structures of fungi – plant roots partner with fungi to access vital vitamins and minerals without expending as much energy as they would alone searching for them in the soil. In return, fungi receive the carbohydrates that plants produce from photosynthesis.

In addition, fungi provide many benefits to the soil and the overall health of an ecosystem. In terms of reducing erosion and run-off, “mycelium is a sticky living seam that holds soil together; remove the fungi, and the ground washes away…fungi increase the volume of water that the soil can absorb, reducing the quantity of nutrients leached out of the soil by rainfall by as much as fifty percent” (Sheldrake, 2020). Fungi reduce the amount of nutrients lost so they are captured and transported in the mycelium to be absorbed and used by plants. However, when synthetic nutrients are added to the environment, the role of fungi weakens.

The Harms of Synthetic Fertilizers

Just as nutrients are responsible for human bodily functions, plants also require nutrients to carry out essential functions. Nitrogen improves the growth and yield of crops, phosphorus promotes root growth which enables plants to access water better, and potassium helps encourage flowering and fruiting (Hill, 2023). Synthetic fertilizers are manufactured by combining chemical compounds to create specific nutrients, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, which are then added to the soil. While synthetic fertilizers have achieved the goals observed above ground — more flowering and fruiting, increased yields, etc. — there is more beneath the surface. Synthetic fertilizers, especially when overused, disrupt the symbiotic relationship between plants and fungi. Plants no longer need fungi when nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium are readily available through synthetic fertilizers. Yet, synthetic fertilizers are not living organisms like fungi. While fungi break down organic and inorganic matter to regenerate the soil with vital nutrients and regulate its transport, synthetic fertilizers cannot. Therefore, “[f]ewer fungi mean more fertilizer is needed, and so it snowballs. The system only works until it doesn’t. Agriculturally depleted soils requiring constant inputs raise sustainability concerns” (Howard, 2020). A harmful positive feedback loop occurs when the ecosystem is oversaturated with synthetic fertilizers because they replace a naturally occurring service with a man-made one. In addition, given that fungi serve multiple roles in the ecosystem, their absence is felt broadly. Less fungi means more erosion and less water and nutrients being captured in the soil for plants to use. The nutrients then leach into waterways and groundwater, an occurrence known as nutrient pollution. Nitrogen and phosphorus not only increase the growth of agricultural plants but also aquatic life like algae. Nitrogen and phosphorus that enter into waterways as nutrient pollution cause algae to grow faster than the ecosystems can handle.

Conclusion

“Food is Medicine” is a reminder that sometimes the solution does not need to be invented in a lab, but instead learned from and observed in nature. Modern medicine has provided humanity with life-saving medications and techniques and, at the same time, we are imperfect and incapable of predicting the rippling effects of our actions on the environment. As “Food is Medicine” also demonstrates, we must not simply treat a symptom as an individual issue but as connected to a larger system of various relationships. Just as the overuse of synthetic fertilizers results in a dependence on artificial nutrients and weakens the system’s resiliency, modern medicine has similar risks. To make ourselves healthier, we must ensure the environments we rely on remain healthy as well.

References

Gropper, Sareen S. (2023). “The Role of Nutrition in Chronic Disease.” MDPI

Hill, Barrett. (2023). “Synthetic Fertilizers: A Comprehensive Overview.” High Yield Crops

Howard, Jennifer. (2020). “Fungi Fertilize the Future.” NC State University, Department of Crop and Soil Sciences

Nguyen, Ginnie Trinh. (2014). “How do vitamins work?” TED-Ed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ISZLTJH5lYg

Sheldrake, Merlin. (2020). Entangled Life: How Fungi Make Our Worlds Change Our Minds, and Shape Our Futures. Random House

United States Environmental Protection Agency. (2016). “Nutrient Pollution: The Problem.” https://19january2017snapshot.epa.gov/nutrientpollution/problem_.html

Whatley, Olivia. (2024). “Return to Indigenous Food as Medicine.” BCA Global. https://bcaglobal.org/interactive-workshops-and-mindful-eating/