The study called for urgent action to expand food policies beyond hygiene and food security measures. India is ahead of neighbouring countries in the implementation of food environment policies but needs stronger policies and infrastructure to enable healthier food choices to combat non-communicable diseases (NCDs) like obesity, diabetes, and heart diseases, according to an expert on Sunday. In a recent study, an international team of researchers, including scientists from The George Institute for Global Health, mapped the food policies and supporting infrastructure in four South Asian countries including Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
The team assessed the level of implementation of these policies and identified priority actions for the primary prevention of diet-related NCDs. Speaking to IANS, Elisa Pineda, Research Fellow at The George Institute for Global Health, UK, said, "India was generally better than neighbouring countries in terms of implementation of food environment policies and infrastructure support related to food and health”. "But it still needs improvement to prevent the rising incidence of diet-related diseases like obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases," she added.
The study, published in the journal The Lancet Regional Health - Southeast Asia, showed that NCDs are the leading cause of illness and death worldwide. South Asians, in particular, face a higher risk of developing Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases compared .