A leading national group focused on adolescent nutrition, spearheaded by the country’s top government nutrition body, has called for stricter regulations on advertisements promoting high-fat, high-salt, and high-sugar (HFSS) foods. The group is also pushing for tighter marketing restrictions and a special health tax on these products.
In a policy brief released on Friday, the Let’s Fix Our Food (LFOF) initiative urged authorities to fully enforce the existing ban on HFSS foods in school canteens and near educational institutions—rules that have already been outlined by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).
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The LFOF consortium includes the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Nutrition, Public Health Foundation of India, and UNICEF, alongside organizations such as the Institute of Economic Growth, the World Health Organization (WHO), Deakin University, and the World Obesity Federation.
The report comes at a time when India is facing a complex nutrition crisis. While 24% of adolescents in the country are underweight, more than 17 million children and teenagers are dealing with obesity. If left unchecked, this number could surge past 27 million by 2030. The report highlights that this “double burden” of malnutrition—undernourishment on one end and obesity on the other—requires urgent and coordinated intervention.
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The brief also points to gaps in policies governing food advertising, which make it difficult to shield children from aggressive marketing of unhealthy foods. “The growing rates of obesity and overweight among adolescents pose a serious public health threat. If we don’t act now, the long-term consequences—both for individual health and the economy—will be severe,” said Dr. V.K. Paul at the launch of the report.
The Push for a Health Tax
The consortium stressed that tackling India’s rising obesity and diabetes rates requires a multi-pronged approach. They are advocating for measures such as a health tax on HFSS foods, stricter advertising regulations, clearer food labeling, and nationwide public awareness campaigns to educate consumers about the risks of unhealthy eating.
