Virtue From Compulsion

THE RECENTLY RELEASED Living Planet Report of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) shows us a list in which India ranks on top and in a good way too. It looks at the question of how many earths would be needed to support the population if food consumption continues as it is today and breaks up this parameter with reference to each country’s patterns. The worst were Argentina, Australia and the US with the number of earths required being 7.74, 6.83 and 5.55 respectively if the world ate like each of them. India was the best. It would need only 0.84 of the earth if the entire world switched over.

The question, however, is—even if it is good for the earth, is it good for India? We are in the middle of an obesity wave. The Economic Survey, which comes before the Budget, earlier this year had said, “Estimates show that the adult obesity rate in India has more than tripled, and the annual rise in children’s is the steepest in the world for India, behind Vietnam and Namibia, accord­ing to the World Obesity Federation.” You don’t even need studies. Once most Indians get past their mid-20s when the metabolic dividend stops paying, the pot belly immediately begins its life and it is there for everyone to see. The reason for this is primarily the Indian diet. It is loaded almost entirely with carbo­hydrates, which is a prime reason for obesity. Fats might have a bad reputa­tion but it is hard to over-consume fats by themselves. There is a limit to how much protein people can indulge in. But carbohydrates, because of how over thousands of years human beings have refined it to be more and more welcom­ing into the human body, can easily be driven to excess.

The Economic Survey points to the National Family Health Survey and adds that obesity “is significantly higher in urban India than in rural In­dia (29.8% vs. 19.3% for men and 33.2% vs. 19.7% for women). Combined with an ageing population in some states, obesity presents a concerning situa­tion.” That tells us something about why the numbers are not far worse. A majority of Indians just cannot afford to overeat. In a food-deficient popula­tion, carbohydrates are beneficial because they provide quick energy to the body and poverty serves as a limit. When the environment changes, as with urbanisation or circumstances improve, the diet starts speaking on the body. This is borne out not just by increase in obesity but also through an explosion of lifestyle diseases. India is the diabetes capital of the world. Heart disease is showing a huge increase in both men and women. The age of get­ting both diabetes and heart attacks are getting lower.

Before saving the earth, India should probably first try to save Indians and have a look at what are the constituents in its diet leading to a health crisis. Otherwise, it is making a virtue out of a compulsion to say we eat better than the world.

food consumptionhealthIndian foodnutritionobesity