Ultra-Processed Food Sales Surge In India, Causing Obesity And Diabetes Crisis: Lancet Study

India is undergoing the fastest ultra-processed food (UPF) sales growth, and the resulting dietary transition is surging obesity and diabetes cases, leading to poor health, according to a new three-paper Series published in The Lancet on Wednesday. UPFs can be defined as food products mostly high in fat, sugar, and/or salt (HFSS), full of unwanted and harmful ingredients such as cosmetic additives like stablisers, emulsifiers, colorants, flavouring substances, etc. These are strongly linked to an increased risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, depression, and premature death, among others.

The papers, by 43 global authors, showed that retail sales of UPFs in India surged from $0.9 billion in 2006 to nearly $38 billion in 2019 -- a forty-fold rise.

Retail shop shelves are now dominated by pre-packaged food and beverage products such as namkeens, noodles, biscuits, sugar-sweetened beverages, chips, breakfast cereals, exposing children and youth through advertising.

As a result, obesity has doubled in India in both men (from 12 per cent to 23 per cent) and women (from nearly 15 per cent to 24 per cent), showed the study.

The Series called out the aggressive marketing and advertising campaigns, which the UPF companies use to drive consumption.

“Our regulations are ineffective to restrict marketing. India must act immediately to take action and cut the consumption of UPFs, and aim for a halt in obesity and diabetes in the coming years. Given that India is the fastest-growing in UPF sales growth and the evidence of poor health outcomes, India needs to frame UPF as a priority health issue,” said Dr Arun Gupta, a pediatrician and a co-author of the Series papers.

The authors urged decisive public health action to tackle UPFs and improve diets globally.

More than relying on consumer behaviour change, they called for coordinated policies to reduce UPF production, marketing, and consumption, alongside improving access to healthy food.

“India needs to adopt strong regulatory measures directed at their production, marketing, and public disclosure of their constituents. Front of pack warning labels must clearly communicate the harmful levels of salt, sugar, and fat to the consumers," said Prof. Srinath Reddy, Chancellor of PHFI University of Public Health Sciences.

“UPF advertised as an addiction can lead to many marketed maladies. A ban on their advertising and sponsorship is needed, especially due to the pervasive danger of celebrity endorsements,” he added.

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