Calculate your "food footprint" by looking for one of several Web sites where this is calculated. Usually it gives a value of either the land or ocean area required to sustain you or, in some cases, your carbon dioxide production

Question

How many Earths would it take to feed everyone if we all ate like you do?

Answer 1

A typical American diet (including vegetarian) will have more protein than considered nutritionally necessary. It is also likely that some vitamins and minerals will be too low, especially calcium for women. The caloric intake is likely to be higher than necessary to maintain an ideal body weight. This later issue is becoming a larger and larger problem within the college-age group.
Because keeping a food diary can influence dietary decisions, it could be useful to discuss this effect on the results of the students' evaluation of their diets. Most individuals will change what they eat because they don't want to write down that they have eaten something that nutritionists would say they shouldn't eat. For example, a person might typically eat a large pizza or a gallon of ice cream by himself or herself but won't eat these things if someone is going to know about it.