Unfortunately, adding dairy products to everything in our diets isn’t just affecting our waistlines or creating gastrointestinal issues. All that dairy is accelerating climate change, too.

Cheese, especially, is significantly more greenhouse gas-heavy than turkey, chicken, tuna, or eggs. The more milk it takes to make cheese, the more dairy cows produce methane and manure, pollute waterways, and consume resources.

If you really want cheese, lower-fat choices have a lower carbon footprint, so choose mozzarella, cottage cheese, feta, muenster, or ricotta. Likewise, soft cheeses require less milk, so consider Brie, Camembert, and goat cheese rather than Parmesan and other hard cheeses.

• Eat little or no dairy, especially cheese; lower-fat and softer cheeses are better than hard, aged cheeses.
• Use cheese sparingly as flavor enhancement instead of relying on its texture or flavor to carry the meal.
• Try alternatives to milk from cows or other ruminants. Soymilk, rice milk, and milk from various nuts can be tasty, nutritious substitutes. Check labels for protein content and added sugars.