An obese person incurs 25% higher health expenditures than a person of normal weight in any given year. http://www.oecd.org/health/49716427.pdf
Dr Anoop Mishra, director of diabetology, obesity and metabolism department, Fortis Group asserts that a lower BMI guideline is necessary for Indians living anywhere in the world. "Indians are more prone to Type 2 diabetes, hypertension and heart disease. We are developing diseases at lower BMI too, so it was absolutely necessary to revise these in India. We have also revised exercise guidelines to 60 minutes, all 7 days of the week. But a lot more still needs to be done. The government needs to launch a major programme to counter the obesity issue. Otherwise there will soon be a diabetic factory in India." http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2009-08-02/news/28385935_1_anti-obesity-body-mass-index-bmi
From http://www.jmnn.org/temp/JMedNutrNutraceut1137-8786347_022626.pdf
Earlier, developing countries, including India, had focused scarce public health resources primarily on the high prevalence of undernutrition. However, these nations are currently facing the double burden of undernutrition as well as overnutrition. Data regarding the nutritional status of adults, as determined by body mass index (BMI), indicate that 50% of Indian adults suffer from different types of chronic energy deficiency, in that they have a BMI <18.5 kg/m^2. In the same survey, it was observed that the BMI values were similar in men and women; however, there were more overweight/obese (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m^2) women (6.6%) than men (3.5%). In certain regions, obesity and consequent diseases are posing an enormous public health problem.
From http://www.childinfo.org/files/low_birthweight_from_EY.pdf
"India alone accounts for 40 per cent of low birthweight births in the developing world and more than half of those in Asia"
From http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/888932523994
"Health at a Glance 2011: OECD Indicators
2. NON-MEDICAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH - Overweight and obesity among children
2.4.1. Children aged 5-17 years who are overweight (including obese), latest available estimates 18.3% girls and 20.6% boys in India.
10 facts on obesity
Reviewed March 2013
http://www.who.int/features/factfiles/obesity/facts/en/index.html (details on site)
1. Overweight and obesity are defined as "abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that may impair health"
Body mass index (BMI) – the weight in kilograms divided by the square of the height in meters (kg/m2) – is a commonly used index to classify overweight and obesity in adults. WHO defines overweight as a BMI equal to or more than 25, and obesity as a BMI equal to or more than 30.
2. More than 1.4 billion adults were overweight in 2008, and more than half a billion obese
3. Globally, over 40 million preschool children were overweight in 2008
4. Overweight and obesity are linked to more deaths worldwide than underweight
5. For an individual, obesity is usually the result of an imbalance between calories consumed and calories expended
6. Supportive environments and communities are fundamental in shaping people’s choices and preventing obesity
7. Children's choices, diet and physical activity habits are influenced by their surrounding environment
8. Eating a healthy diet can help prevent obesity
People can:
1) maintain a healthy weight
2) limit total fat intake and shift fat consumption away from saturated fats to unsaturated fats
3) increase consumption of fruit, vegetables, pulses, whole grains and nuts
4) limit the intake of sugar and salt.
9. Regular physical activity helps maintain a healthy body
10. Curbing the global obesity epidemic requires a population-based multisectoral, multi-disciplinary, and culturally relevant approach
