World Obesity Day is observed on March 4 every year and like the rest of the world, India needs to address the issue of obesity urgently. India is grappling with an obesity problem and in his monthly ‘Mann ki Baat’ radio broadcast recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the issue. The Prime Minister, while nominating 10 leaders from different fields, put special emphasis on edible oil consumption and said it’s essential to “spread awareness on reducing edible oil consumption in food”.
Discussing the impact of obesity on health on his radio podcast, PM Modi said, “To become a fit and healthy nation, we have to tackle the problem of obesity. According to a study, today one in every eight people is suffering from the problem of obesity. Obesity cases have doubled in the past few years, but what is even more worrying is that the problem of obesity among children has also increased four-fold,” PM Modi said. “Therefore, you should decide that you will use 10% less oil every month. You can decide that you will buy 10 per cent less oil when you buy it for cooking. This will be an important step towards reducing obesity. By making small changes in our eating habits, we can make our future stronger, fitter and disease-free,” PM Modi said in the ‘Mann ki Baat’ podcast.
Parina Joshi, PG in Dietetics and Hospital Food Service, HOD Dietetics and Nutrition, Surya Hospitals, shares her insights on edible oil consumption.
Q. How to reduce consumption of oil? Outline choices that are both practical and affordable.
Parina Joshi (PJ): Oils and fats play an important role in our daily diet. They are responsible for various metabolic activities and balanced hormonal functions. I would rather not label them bad or make them villains in our diet. But yes, most importantly, moderation and the right amount is key. To reduce oil consumption, you can alter and opt for different cooking methods that may require very little or no oil for preparation, for example, steaming, poaching, baking, and more. So smart cooking methods are very important.
Q. What are the best oils for prepping food? Dos And Don’ts.
PJ: It’s not only the amount of oil, but also the type of oil used is extremely important. It is important to have a mix of different oils and fats in your daily diet to fulfill the supply of all the important fatty acids – for instance, a combination of oil and ghee. One must avoid consumption of saturated fats as much as possible. It is also advised to change the cooking oil at intervals. One can use groundnut, olive, mustard oil, etc, depending on the region and the taste of food they want.
Q. Tackling Obesity: Share some diet tips to follow.
PJ: Always know your food… or the process used for preparation: read the labels, have regular physical activity, and eat fresh and healthy. Invisible sources should also be considered…like healthy fats from nuts and dry fruits
Q. List some small changes that can make big differences.
PJ: It is extremely important to check labels before buying any packaged or processed foods; we must know what we are eating in the name of healthy and so-called low-fat foods sold across the shelves.
