Tejal Somvanshi
India faces a severe health challenge as obesity rates climb at an alarming pace. Recent studies published in The Lancet project that by 2050, approximately 440 million Indians could be overweight or obese—making India second only to China in global obesity rankings.
Growing Numbers Paint a Troubling Picture
Currently, India has about 180 million overweight or obese people (81 million men and 98 million women). But researchers from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021, including experts from the Indian Council of Medical Research, forecast this number will more than double over the next 25 years.
The breakdown reveals concerning trends across age groups:
- Adults (25+): 440 million projected by 2050 (218 million men, 231 million women)
- Children (5-14): 30 million projected (16 million boys, 14 million girls)
- Adolescents (15-24): 39.7 million projected (22.7 million young men, 16.9 million young women)
By 2050, India is expected to have the world’s highest number of overweight and obese individuals in the 15-24 age group.
Globally, the picture is equally concerning. By 2050, an estimated 3.8 billion adults worldwide—over half the global adult population—could be overweight or obese.
What’s Driving the Epidemic?
The shift toward ultra-processed foods high in sugar, salt, and fat plays a major role in this health crisis. India has seen one of the largest annual increases in ultra-processed food sales per capita between 2009 and 2019, alongside Cameroon and Vietnam.
Emmanuela Gakidou, lead author from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation, describes this trend as “a profound tragedy and a monumental societal failure.”
Food industry strategies are partly to blame. The studies note that multinational food corporations have shifted focus from high-income countries to expanding markets in lower and middle-income nations like India, where “population growth, improvement in per-capita income, and weaker regulations have created favorable markets.”
Similar Posts
Health and Economic Consequences
The obesity epidemic brings several serious health consequences:
- Increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and certain cancers
- Early onset of lifestyle diseases in children and adolescents
- Higher vulnerability to infections
- Increased healthcare costs and reduced productivity
A particularly complex pattern emerges in India, where childhood undernutrition can trigger adaptive mechanisms that promote fat storage later in life—creating a “dual burden” of malnutrition.
Beyond BMI: Rethinking How We Measure Obesity
Experts are calling for changes in how obesity is diagnosed. In January, authors of a Lancet Commission report urged moving beyond just BMI (Body Mass Index) to include measurements like waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio.
The commission proposed two new categories:
- “Clinical obesity“: A chronic condition with obesity-related organ dysfunction
- “Pre-clinical obesity”: Increased health risk without current illness
This approach addresses concerns that “BMI is not an honest measure of health or disease and can thus result in a wrong diagnosis.”
Solutions and Action Steps
The studies outline several key strategies:
- Protect local food systems from being overtaken by large food companies
- Invest in clinical management and treatment of obesity
- Develop national policies and action plans (currently only 40% of countries have such policies, dropping to 10% in low and middle-income nations)
- Study intervention strategies specifically for low-income settings
- Improve access to the new generation of anti-obesity medications
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has recognized the problem, stating in his February 23rd “Mann Ki Baat” radio address that “obesity will have to be dealt with to be a fit and healthy nation.”
The growing obesity epidemic represents one of India’s most pressing public health challenges—requiring coordinated action from government, healthcare systems, and communities.
