How to Reduce Your Water Footprint
Avoid luxury ingredients, the things that used to be precious (because they required extraordinary resources)., Eat proteins that "save" water and don't eat more than you need., Drink water instead of anything else., Reduce your grains and/or...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Avoid luxury ingredients
These include caffeine, vanilla, and sugar. For example, a typical cup of cola requires 333 cups of water to produce: a cup of water for the liquid, 165 cups of water for the vanilla flavoring, 100 cups for the caffeine, and 67 cups for the sugar! -
Step 2: the things that used to be precious (because they required extraordinary resources).
Most people only need 10% of their calories to be protein (USDA recommendation is 5 ounces of meat per day for most individuals).
Beef is one of the most "costly" proteins at 1700 cups per ounce, followed by red meats in general.
If you eat animal protein, chicken and eggs are best at 250-400 cups per ounce.
Tofu and beans also come in around 400 cups per ounce. , Below are some "water footprint" numbers for a cup of common drinks:
Water
- 1 cup Wine
- 125 cups Diet Soda
- 200 cups Soda
- 265 cups Tea
- 275 cups Diet Cola
- 290 cups Beer
- 300 cups Cola
- 333 cups Milk
- 600 cups Coffee
- 1,100 cups Fruit Juice
- 1,200 cups , The popular DASH diet (reduces hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease) recommends just 6 ounces of grains/starch per day, versus the typical food pyramid recommendation of 12 ounces.
Below are water footprint numbers for an ounce of various grains or starches (e.g., a slice of bread).
Rice
- 300 cups Oats
- 290 cups Wheat
- 220 cups Corn - 150 cups Potatoes
- 35 cups , Make half your plate fruits and vegetables.
The DASH diet recommends 3 servings of fruit and 5 servings of vegetables per day.
Below is the amount of water required to grow 1/2 cup of various raw fruits and vegetables:
Spinach
- 20 cups Lettuce
- 30 cups Watermelon
- 35 cups Cabbage
- 50 cups Carrots
- 50 cups Eggplant
- 60 cups Broccoli & Cauliflower
- 65 cups Tomatoes
- 70 cups Cucumber
- 90 cups Onion
- 95 cups Peppers
- 100 cups Green Beans
- 130 cups Berries
- 135 cups Apple Chunks
- 170 cups Grapes
- 185 cups Peas
- 190 cups Orange Slices
- 210 cups Banana Slices
-220 cups Raisins
- 600 cups Fruit Juice (4 oz)
- 600 cups Asparagus
- 605 cups , If looking to milk products for calcium, milk and yogurt use less water per serving than soft cheeses and hard cheeses.
Below is the amount of water needed to produce a serving of "milk" for calcium:
Soy Milk (8 oz, no sugar or vanilla)
- 500 cups Cow Milk (8 oz)
- 600 cups Yogurt (8 oz)
- 600 cups Cheese (1.5 oz)
- 935 cups -
Step 3: Eat proteins that "save" water and don't eat more than you need.
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Step 4: Drink water instead of anything else.
-
Step 5: Reduce your grains and/or substitute vegetable starches (like potatoes).
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Step 6: Fill up with fresh fruits and vegetables!
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Step 7: Calcium builds bones
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Step 8: and many vegetables contain good amounts of calcium.
Detailed Guide
These include caffeine, vanilla, and sugar. For example, a typical cup of cola requires 333 cups of water to produce: a cup of water for the liquid, 165 cups of water for the vanilla flavoring, 100 cups for the caffeine, and 67 cups for the sugar!
Most people only need 10% of their calories to be protein (USDA recommendation is 5 ounces of meat per day for most individuals).
Beef is one of the most "costly" proteins at 1700 cups per ounce, followed by red meats in general.
If you eat animal protein, chicken and eggs are best at 250-400 cups per ounce.
Tofu and beans also come in around 400 cups per ounce. , Below are some "water footprint" numbers for a cup of common drinks:
Water
- 1 cup Wine
- 125 cups Diet Soda
- 200 cups Soda
- 265 cups Tea
- 275 cups Diet Cola
- 290 cups Beer
- 300 cups Cola
- 333 cups Milk
- 600 cups Coffee
- 1,100 cups Fruit Juice
- 1,200 cups , The popular DASH diet (reduces hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease) recommends just 6 ounces of grains/starch per day, versus the typical food pyramid recommendation of 12 ounces.
Below are water footprint numbers for an ounce of various grains or starches (e.g., a slice of bread).
Rice
- 300 cups Oats
- 290 cups Wheat
- 220 cups Corn - 150 cups Potatoes
- 35 cups , Make half your plate fruits and vegetables.
The DASH diet recommends 3 servings of fruit and 5 servings of vegetables per day.
Below is the amount of water required to grow 1/2 cup of various raw fruits and vegetables:
Spinach
- 20 cups Lettuce
- 30 cups Watermelon
- 35 cups Cabbage
- 50 cups Carrots
- 50 cups Eggplant
- 60 cups Broccoli & Cauliflower
- 65 cups Tomatoes
- 70 cups Cucumber
- 90 cups Onion
- 95 cups Peppers
- 100 cups Green Beans
- 130 cups Berries
- 135 cups Apple Chunks
- 170 cups Grapes
- 185 cups Peas
- 190 cups Orange Slices
- 210 cups Banana Slices
-220 cups Raisins
- 600 cups Fruit Juice (4 oz)
- 600 cups Asparagus
- 605 cups , If looking to milk products for calcium, milk and yogurt use less water per serving than soft cheeses and hard cheeses.
Below is the amount of water needed to produce a serving of "milk" for calcium:
Soy Milk (8 oz, no sugar or vanilla)
- 500 cups Cow Milk (8 oz)
- 600 cups Yogurt (8 oz)
- 600 cups Cheese (1.5 oz)
- 935 cups
About the Author
Samuel Watson
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow home improvement tutorials.
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