Tag: Ecosystem health

Over 400 'dead zones' exist worldwide due to nutrient excess in waterways, highlighting their critical location and cycling in ecosystems. But where are nutrients located in the context of our daily lives, from the food on our plate to the larger environment that sustains all life? Nutrients are fundamental chemical elements and compounds found across all biotic and abiotic components of the planet, from organic food sources to mineral-rich soil.

The human body is made up of approximately 60% water, highlighting its fundamental role in sustaining life. From the largest oceans to the smallest cells, water is a driving force behind biological processes and planetary health.

The human body is composed of approximately 60% water, a testament to the critical role fluid plays in maintaining life and proper function. When the body loses more water than it takes in, this balance is disrupted, a state known as a negative water balance. This concept also applies to ecological systems where water outflow surpasses inflow, leading to a water deficit in the environment.

According to the EPA, source reduction is the most preferred action in the food recovery hierarchy, offering the greatest environmental, social, and economic benefits. This framework is just one of several critical systems illustrating why food hierarchy is important, with applications ranging from ecological balance to our personal health.

The global burden of malnutrition is a significant threat to human health, but on a macro scale, living organisms depend on the planet's continuous, natural process of recycling essential elements. This process is the broader, ecological meaning of the nutrition cycle, also known as a nutrient or biogeochemical cycle.

Over 60% of the human body is water, a fact underscoring its fundamental role in biology and life itself. In nearly every measure that supports life and ecological balance, asking why is water better than oil yields an answer rooted in their foundational chemical differences and profound impacts on our planet.

Over 95% of the mass of all living things is composed of elements like carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen that are continuously recycled through ecosystems. This vital, continuous process, known as the nutrition cycle, or biogeochemical cycle, describes how these essential elements move through different parts of the environment.

While there are an estimated 390,900 plant species worldwide, only a fraction—perhaps 1,000 to 2,000—are considered edible by humans, highlighting a vast difference from assumptions about how many fruits and vegetables are in the balance of nature. The intricate web of natural systems reveals that the true value of wild produce lies not in quantity for human consumption, but in its role for biodiversity and ecosystem resilience.

Globally, 95% of the world's food comes from seeds or plants grown from them. The importance of seeds extends far beyond their edible nature, encompassing the very foundation of ecosystems, the preservation of biodiversity, and the future of human food security.

In many ecosystems, up to 90% of the organic material manufactured by symbiotic algae can be transferred to their coral hosts, profoundly impacting reef productivity. These mutually beneficial partnerships, known as symbiotic nutrition, underpin the health of countless organisms, from coral reefs to the human gut microbiome.