Double burden of malnutrition in India - Undernutrition and Overnutrition

Barry M Popkin, Linda S Adair, Shu Wen Ng; Global nutrition transition and the pandemic of obesity in developing countries. Nutr Rev 2014; 70 (1): 3-21. doi: 10.1111/j.1753-4887.2011.00456.x

Despite the vast research on nutrition and health, malnutrition is still a major fatality in this present day. Policymakers, social scientist and medical experts have expressed alarm about the growing problem. While most agree that the issue deserves attention, consensus dissolves around how to respond and resolve the problem. Malnourishment continues to be a primary health liability in developing nations such as Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. It is globally the most significant risk factor for illness and death, predominantly with hundreds of millions of pregnant women

While most people know that eating well is important to staying healthy and for prolonging life, poverty makes it difficult to access good nutritious food. Easy access to abundant food is not

The nutrition transition and the increasing westernization, urbanization and mechanization occurring in most countries around the world is associated with changes in the diet towards one of high fat, high energy-dense foods and a sedentary lifestyle (Popkin, 2001). This shift is also associated with the current rapid changes in childhood and adult obesity. Even in many low income countries, obesity is now rapidly increasing, and often coexists in the same population with chronic under nutrition.

References Shashidhar, H. (2016, March 10). Malnutrition. Retrieved September 27, 2016, from

In its State of Food Insecurity in the World 2012 report, the United Nations found that nearly 870 million people around the globe are chronically malnourished (Ruttan 6).  Chronic malnourishment weakens the immune system, and it significantly increases people's risk of contracting infectious diseases. As a result of the problem and severity of malnourishment, one of the United Nations top eight goals is to drastically reduce the number of people who suffer from this condition (Johnson 4). During the course of working towards their goal, the U.N. has identified agricultural growth as one of the most effective ways to reduce the prevalence of malnourishment. However, the United Nation has also determined that in order for agricultural growth

Summary: This article goes on to tell us what a problem obesity is becoming. It’s becoming such a problem that nowadays Overweight and obesity are the main risk factors for many non-communicable diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, musculoskeletal disorders, and some types of cancers. Statistics show, in both developed and developing countries, that the prevalence of overweight and obesity is growing. It used to be in just developed countries that obesity and overweight was a problem. But now, it’s a problem in both developed and developing

….Overweight and obesity are advancing rapidly in the developing world as well… [While] 80 percent of world’s hungry children live in countries with food surpluses. (World Watch Institute)

Over the past few decades, obesity rate has grown drastically in the United States. “A third of U.S. adults are obese” (Brady 519), placing them at a higher risk for diseases, and increased healthcare spending. It a preventable nutritional problem that affects people of all ages, gender and race, with minority groups and people of low socioeconomic status disproportionately affected. It is a multifaceted problem with many issues at its root. Obesity is the result of our agricultural policies, present economic condition, and unhealthy lifestyle.

America is the wealthiest country in the world, but it is also home to some of the hungriest people. According to the IMF’s advanced economy countries on Food Insecurity, America rank’s the worst (a place at the table). Similar to the rest of the world, the majority of the hungry in America are those with a low socioeconomic status; however, the hunger in America is not due to lack of food but lack of nutrition. The people who are poverty stricken in America are also commonly affected by obesity due to lack of income and education. Though it may seem to be a paradox, hunger and obesity run hand-in-hand. Often times

Nutrition is important for healthy life. Many people are still hungry around the world even though there is mass production of food. This is because of unhealthy food production. In today’s world we see many obese people because of high intake of high fat and cholesterol containing food. It is important to have a healthy diet/ nutritional intake for individuals to have good foundation for physical and mental health. Now a day’s healthy food is getting more expensive rather than unhealthy food. Poor people are forced to eat unhealthy food, while the rich can afford to eat whatever the please. Food insecurity is caused by individuals not having healthy food for their families due to their low income or political and

This also presents the needs of the children. Lack of nutrition in early childhood places children at high risk of developing obesity when food and physical activity arrangements concur. Many countries now face the strain of hunger in all its categories, with rising rates of childhood obesity as well as high rates of child nutrition. Childhood obesity is often secluded as a public health issue in these ambient times, where culturally, an overweight child is considered to be healthy. In high-income countries, the risks of childhood obesity are considerable in low socioeconomic groups. Although presently the results show to be true in low and middle income countries, a changing pattern is emerging. In large scale countries, certain population subgroups, such as migrant and indigenous children, are at exceptionally high

There are many indicators of poverty. One indicator of poverty is obesity; it mostly affects families in low socioeconomic levels. Obesity has become an epidemic rising across the globe. Recently, childhood obesity is becoming a prevailing problem in the urban areas in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Argentina’s rates are rising at a level that is equal to the United States of America. Obesity being defined as having a Body Mass Index of over 30- Body Mass Index is based on the relationship between the height and weight of a person and should ideally be between 18.5 and 24.9 (Cole, Bellizzi, Flegal, & Dietz, 2000). Shifts in diet and physical activity patterns have affected the low- and moderate-income developing countries over the last two decades (Herscovici, Kovalskys, & De Gregorio, 2013). There is evidence that a high intake of sweetened beverages and high-fat/high-sugar foods, coupled with a low intake of fruits and vegetables and increased sedentary behavior, is associated with obesity (Herscovici, Kovalskys, & De Gregorio, 2013).

Food insecurity rates have soared to unprecedented levels in recent years, becoming one of the most important and high-profile nutrition-related public health issues in the United States (Gundersen, Engelhard, & Waxman, 2014). In the city of Tiffin, there are many people who are hungry and suffering from poverty. Children in many different countries are suffering because they do not have the money to eat and also are unable to get the effective amount of nutritional food for their growing bodies. Poverty and hunger are some of the leading problems in the world today. Even with the advancements the world has come across with agriculture there are still large quantities of people who are unable to eat appropriate amounts of food

In developing countries, food insecurity (FIS) coupled with the increasing rate of forest degradation and deforestation is one of the most burning challenges of the 21st century (Barrett, 2010; Webb et al., 2006). The 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the 1992 International Conference on Nutrition, the 1996 World Food Summit, the 2009 World Summit on Food Security and the 2012 report on the State of Undernourishment in the World all emphasized the critical need to decrease FIS and hunger globally and especially in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, in developing countries, measuring FIS has remained a major problem, not just because of lack of human and financial resources but also because of the need for suitable methodological approaches (Ballard et al., 2013; da Costa et al., 2013). Consequently, many definitions have been advocated to capture FIS more precisely. FIS exists whenever the availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods or the ability to acquire such foods in socially acceptable ways is limited or uncertain (Sharafkhani et al., 2011). FIS is a situation that exists when people lack secure access to sufficient safe and nutritious food for normal growth and development and an active and healthy life (FAO et al., 2012). FIS may be chronic, seasonal or transitory (FAO et al., 2012). FIS applies to food-insecure households which include those with low