A third of India will be obese by 2050: Lancet study says

New Delhi: Nearly a third of India’s projected population will be obese by 2050, The Indian Express reported citing a study published by journal Lancet.

The rampant obese crisis will hit the country with 21.8 crore men and 23.1 crore women, exactly 44.9 crore, becoming overweight in the years to come.

Pointing to the situation globally, the study claimed that ‘more than half of all adults and a third of children and adolescents’ could be either overweight or obese by 2050.

The crisis will be worryingly shooting up among those between the ages of 15 and 24, according to the study.

It is reported that prevalence of obesity increased from what it was 0.4 crore in 1990 to 1.68 crore in 2021 with it is projected to hit 2.27 crores by 2050.

Obesity among young women has increased from 0.33 crore in 1990 to 1.3 crore in 2021 and is likely to go up to 1.69 crore in 2050.

In terms of absolute numbers, India surpassed China and the United States in 2021 topping the chart. China and the United States were ahead in 1990.

In 2021, half of the world’s obese and overweight adults lived in eight countries, including India.

The situation, according to the study, is increasingly concerning as the rampant obesity cases in low and middle income countries, alongside the childhood malnutrition and pervasive infectious diseases, could cripple healthcare systems.

The childhood undernutrition could lead to accumulation of energy in fat tissues causing obesity in adulthood, which in turn could increase the early onset of lifestyle problems such as Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and certain cancers.

Also, obesity among children is worryingly on the rise with the report pointing to an uptick from .46 crore in 1990, to 1.3 crore in 2021 and is projected to hit 1.6 crore in 2050.

The consumption of processed foods high in salt, sugar and fat is the driving factor behind obesity cases.

The study, showcasing the changes in food culture, said that ‘Multinational food and beverage corporations and fast-food chains are shifting their investments from high income countries to low and middle income countries, where population growth, improvement in per-capita income and weaker regulations have created favourable markets for expansion. Between 2009 and 2019, the largest annual growth in ultra-processed food and beverage sales per capita was observed in Cameroon, India, and Vietnam.’