If you are the parent of a child who consumes pizza, burgers, and cold drinks excessively, this report may raise your concerns. A new and shocking report has been released by the National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). According to this report, junk food and cold drinks/juices have become the biggest enemies of children’s health in India. According to the report, approximately 41 million children aged 5 to 19 in the country are overweight or obese. The situation is so dire that approximately 10% of children suffer from pre-diabetes, 1% of adolescents have diabetes, and 5% of adolescents suffer from high blood pressure (BP). In simple terms, today one in three children is suffering from some disease or the other.
Junk food is scientifically called HFSS (High Fat, Sugar, and Salt). This means foods that are high in fat, sugar, and salt. Chips, pizza, burgers, French fries, momos, cold drinks, and packaged snacks offer little to no nutrition and are extremely high in calories. Eating them daily leads to rapid weight gain. This obesity ultimately leads to dangerous diseases like diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, and cancer.
Most of the causes of AIDS are sugary drinks and unhealthy eating habits. 92.6% of parents believe that junk food is easily available around schools and colleges.
Countries around the world have intensified their efforts to prevent the harmful effects of junk food:
In South Korea, there has been an 81% reduction in junk food advertisements on TV.
In the UK, the number of such advertisements displayed to children has decreased by 37%.
Norway has completely banned digital advertisements targeting children under 18 by 2026.
ICMR-NIN has suggested some strict measures to the government:
Health Tax – Like cigarettes and alcohol, hefty taxes should be imposed on foods high in fat, sugar, and salt, so that junk food becomes more expensive and people choose nutritious food.
Large warnings on packages – The amount of sugar, fat, and salt in a package should be clearly and in bold letters.
Ban near schools – Strict restrictions should be imposed on the sale and advertising of junk food near schools and colleges.
Consumption of junk food causes various diseases.
Chips/French fries – High blood pressure, obesity
Burgers/pizzas – Obesity, heart disease
Cold drinks – Diabetes, fatty liver
Cake/pastries – Obesity, high blood sugar
Toffee/chocolate – Tooth decay, obesity
Instant noodles – High blood pressure, kidney damage
A WHO report explains how imposing a health tax on sugary drinks and junk food can improve people’s eating habits.
According to a study by the medical journal ‘The Lancet’, the rate of obesity among children and adolescents across the world has increased more than four times between 1990 and 2022. During this period, in India also, about 1.25 crore children and adolescents aged between five and 19 years were found suffering from obesity or excessive weight.