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Nourishment

Nourishment

The WELL Building Standard for Nourishment requires the availability of fresh, wholesome foods, limits unhealthy ingredients and encourages better eating habits and food culture.

Background

Nutrition plays a key role in health maintenance, weight management and chronic disease prevention. However, adherence to the dietary recommendations in the U.S. is poor. Similarly, global dietary patterns are also less than optimal; in many countries, people consume more than 500 calories from added sugars per day. In the U.S., half of the population consumes sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) on any given day, with a quarter of the population consuming over 200 calories from SSBs daily. In addition, the average dietary intake of calories in the U.S. in 2010 was nearly 2,600 calories per person per day, which is a 25% increase in energy intake since 1970. Consumption of flour and cereal products, added fats and oils, and added sugars and sweeteners are some of the chief contributors to the increase in caloric intake.

Together with physical inactivity, poor diet is a major contributor to the U.S. overweight (Body Mass Index (BMI) of 25-29.9) and obesity (BMI over 30) epidemic, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer. Over two thirds (69%) of all American adults (20 years and older) today are overweight, and more than a third (35%) are obese. The situation is similar worldwide, with more than 1.9 billion (39%) adults overweight in 2014, of which over 600 million (13%) were obese, making obesity not just an epidemic but a global pandemic.

Suboptimal dietary patterns can also lead to other detrimental health outcomes. For example, high consumption of SSBs has been linked to diabetes, metabolic syndrome, obesity, hypertension, dental caries and even depression. High intake of red and processed meat is associated with heart failure, hypertension, coronary heart disease, and colorectal and breast cancers. Moreover, low fruit and vegetable consumption is associated with a higher rate of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular mortality, as well as breast and gastrointestinal cancers. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that 2.7 million deaths worldwide are attributed to insufficient fruit and vegetable intake, making it one of the top 10 risk factors contributing to global mortality.

While the components and ingredients that often make up our foods represent a significant and reasonable concern, another issue is the changes in cultural food practices. Busy lives and longer workdays are encouraging unhealthy behaviors, including eating meals on the go and in front of the TV, snacking between meals and eating large portion meals. Further, high-fat, high-sugar snack foods of low nutritional quality are engineered to be tastier, with potentially addictive qualities. These foods are often supported by colorful and enticing advertisements that inundate our environments, from vending machines to restaurants and supermarket shelves. In the U.S. alone, more than $1.6 billion is spent annually by the food industry specifically marketing cereal, fast-food and soft drinks to children and adolescents, which, according to the Institute of Medicine (IOM), is “out of balance with recommended healthful diets”, contributing to unhealthy dietary patterns and putting the health of the American youth at risk.

Fortunately, food purchase and consumption decisions, dietary patterns and preparation practices all represent not only points of concern, but also venues for health improvement. A variety of social, economic, physiological and environmental factors can affect individual dietary behaviors; the built environment is one of them. Distance and access to grocery stores and other places that have fresh fruits and vegetables, access to farmers’ markets, the use of behavioral economics in cafeterias, increased availability of healthy foods and reduced marketing and availability of unhealthy foods, provision of caloric information and many other strategies can have an effect on our food choices and overall dietary patterns. The WELL Building Standard® recognizes this and seeks to implement design strategies and policies.

38 Fruits and vegetables

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Fruit and Vegetable Variety - P P
2: Fruit and Vegetable Promotion - P P

39 Processed foods

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Refined Ingredient Restrictions P P P
2: Trans Fat Ban P P P

40 Food allergies

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Food Allergy Labeling P P P

41 Hand washing

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Hand Washing Supplies - P P
2: Contamination Reduction - P P
3: Sink Dimensions - P P

42 Food contamination

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Cold Storage - P P

43 Artificial ingredients

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Artificial Substance Labeling O P P

44 Nutritional information

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Detailed Nutritional Information O P P

45 Food advertising

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Advertising and Environmental Cues O P P
2: Nutritional Messaging O P P

46 Safe food preparation materials

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Cooking Material - O O
2: Cutting Surfaces - O O

47 Serving sizes

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Meal Sizes - O O
2: Dinnerware Sizes - O O

48 Special diets

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Food Alternatives - O O

49 Responsible food production

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Sustainable Agriculture - O O
2: Humane Agriculture - O O

50 Food storage

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Storage Capacity - O O

51 Food production

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Gardening Space O O O
2: Planting Support O O O

52 Mindful eating

Core & Shell New & Existing Interiors New & Existing Buildings
1: Eating Spaces O O O
2: Break Area Furnishings O O O

38 Fruits and vegetables

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Fruit and Vegetable Variety - P - P -
2: Fruit and Vegetable Promotion - P - P -

39 Processed foods

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Refined Ingredient Restrictions - - O P P
2: Trans Fat Ban - P O P P
3: Fryer Oil P - - - -
4: Beverages for Elementary and Middle School - P - - -
5: Beverages for High School and Adult Education - P - - -
6: Ingredients Restrictions for Schools - P - - -

40 Food allergies

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Food Allergy Labeling - P O P P

41 Hand washing

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Hand Washing Supplies P O - P P
2: Contamination Reduction P O - P P
3: Sink Dimensions P O O P P
4: Hand Washing Station Location P O - P -

42 Food contamination

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Cold Storage P - O - -
2: Food Preparation Separation P - - - -
3: Residential Kitchen Sinks - - O - -

43 Artificial ingredients

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Artificial Substance Labeling - P P P -

44 Nutritional information

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Detailed Nutritional Information P P P P -
2: Healthy Cooking Guidelines - - - P -

45 Food advertising

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Advertising and Environmental Cues P P O P -
2: Nutritional Messaging - P O P -
3: Healthy Choices Promotion - P - - -
4: Healthy Menu Design - - - P -

46 Safe food preparation materials

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Cooking Material O - - - -
2: Cutting Surfaces O - - - -
3: Banned Plastics O - - - -
4: Containers for Prepared Food O - - - -

47 Serving sizes

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Meal Sizes O O - O -
2: Dinnerware Sizes O O - O -

48 Special diets

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Food Alternatives - O - P -

49 Responsible food production

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Sustainable Agriculture - O - P -
2: Humane Agriculture - O - P -

50 Food storage

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Storage Capacity - O O O O
2: Temperature Control O - - - -
3: Oil Storage O - - - -
4: Kitchen Food Safety O - - - -

51 Food production

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Gardening Space - O O O -
2: Planting Support - O O O -

52 Mindful eating

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Eating Spaces - O - O O
2: Break Area Furnishings - O - O O
3: Lunch Breaks for Schools - O - - -

P1 Food environment

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Healthy Food Access - O O - -
2: Communal Cooking Area - O - - -

P7 Strategic Dining Design

Commercial Kitchen Education Multifamily Residential Restaurant Retail
1: Assessment Scorecard - P - - -
2: Healthy Food Convenience - P - O -
3: Seating Choice Variety - - - O -
4: Quiet Dining Zone - - - O -