​Catch them young: On overweight or obese children in India

​Catch them young: On overweight or obese children in India

Increasing activity, eating healthy meals will help keep obesity (मोटापा) away

The phrase ‘catch them young’ has acquired (प्राप्त करना, हासिल करना) a perverse (विकृत, उल्टा, असामान्य) slant (झुकाव, दृष्टिकोण) in a world grappling with (किसी समस्या से जूझना, सामना करना) a galloping (तेज़ी से बढ़ता हुआ, तेजी से फैलता हुआ) non-communicable diseases (गैर-संचारी रोग) epidemic (महामारी, किसी रोग का व्यापक प्रकोप). The full gamut (the complete range or scope of something; spectrum, range, sweep, compass) of conditions that comprise metabolic diseases, usually impacting people with advancing age (बढ़ती उम्र), are affecting even children, studies show. The recently released World Obesity Atlas 2026 (an annual report providing global obesity trends; obesity report, global health index) delivers a true shocker (चौंकाने वाली बात). As per the report, released on World Obesity Day (March 4) (विश्व मोटापा दिवस), in 2025, there were 14.9 million children in the 5-9 years group and more than 26.4 million children in the 10-19 age group in India who were overweight or obese (excessively overweight in a way that is unhealthy; corpulent, fleshy, heavy, plump, stout, chubby). About 41 million children had a high BMI (शरीर द्रव्यमान सूचकांक) rate. Further, estimates suggest (संकेत देना, बताना) that by 2040, 20 million children in India will be obese and 56 million will be overweight. The report also estimates that at least 120 million children of school-going age are expected to have early signs of chronic illnesses (दीर्घकालिक बीमारियाँ) such as hypertension (a medical condition characterized by abnormally high blood pressure; high blood pressure, arterial hypertension, cardiovascular stress, elevated blood pressure) and cardiovascular disease due to (as a result of something; because of, owing to, attributable to) weight, in 2040. While, globally, China leads both categories, with 62 million children with high BMI and 33 million with obesity, India comes second, and is tailed (follow, track, shadow, pursue) by the United States (27 million high BMI; 13 million obesity). With such high obesity figures, the attendant (occurring with or as a result of something; accompanying, associated, related, linked) health statistics too are unacceptably (intolerably, unreasonably, unsatisfactorily, inappropriately) off the charts: In India, children aged 5-19 years with disease indicators (sign, signal, measure, index) attributed to high BMI, including hypertension, diabetes, hyperglycaemia (an excess of glucose in the bloodstream; high blood sugar, elevated glucose, blood sugar spike, excess sugar), high cholesterol, and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) (a condition characterized by a buildup of fat in the liver linked to metabolic dysfunction; fatty liver disease, hepatic steatosis, metabolic liver disorder, lipid-induced hepatopathy) are projected to rise substantially (to a great extent; significantly, considerably, materially, largely) by 2040. The risk factors are similar to adult-onset (referring to a disease manifesting in adulthood; late-onset, adult-acquired, non-juvenile, mature-onset) metabolic conditions, broadly (generally, mainly, largely) categorised as insufficient (not enough; inadequate, deficient, lacking, sparse) activity and consumption (the action of eating or drinking something; intake, eating, drinking, ingestion) of unhealthy foods. Other aspects, mentioned as causes, include poor access to healthy school meals for primary and secondary grade children, and sub-optimal (of less than the highest standard or quality; less than ideal, inadequate, substandard, inferior) breast feeding for infants aged 1-5 months.

Clearly, not enough is being done to stem (halt, stop, check, curb) this tide (a powerful trend of events; trend, current, wave, movement) of growing (increasing, expanding, rising, mounting, escalating) childhood obesity. The World Obesity Federation (an international organization leading global efforts to combat obesity) calls for greater action and emphasis (special importance or prominence given to something; importance, significance, stress, weight) on monitoring (observation, surveillance, tracking, supervision) in terms of (with regard to; regarding, concerning, with respect to, as regards) marketing restrictions and sugar levies on packaged food products. Experts have also called for restrictions on marketing packaged foods to children, sincere (genuine, honest) implementation of global physical activity (overall bodily movement and exercise undertaken by populations worldwide; worldwide fitness, physical exertion) recommendations for children, ensuring the mandatory (compulsory, obligatory, binding, essential) breastfeeding period for infants, and healthier school food standards, besides (in addition to; apart from, other than, excluding, as well as) integration of prevention and care into primary health (the basic healthcare provided to individuals in a community; basic health, fundamental health, core well-being, primary care) systems. It is worrisome (causing anxiety or concern; alarming, troubling, disturbing, concerning) that obesity and overweight, once associated with higher-income countries, are now catching up rapidly in low- and middle-income countries. If nothing is done at this stage, the gains that the nation expects from its youth, even as it heads towards a grey path (a trajectory leading toward an aging demographic or uncertain future; aging trajectory, dismal future, grim course, uncertain path), will be hollowed out. The only way out is to catch them young, even before non-communicable diseases can.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.obesity (noun)

Hindi Meaning - मोटापा
English Meaning - the condition of being excessively overweight in a way that is unhealthy; fatness, corpulence, stoutness, heaviness.

2.keep away (phrasal verb)

Hindi Meaning - दूर रखना, बचाना
English Meaning - avert, avoid, ward off, stave off.

3.acquire (verb)

Hindi Meaning - प्राप्त करना, हासिल करना
English Meaning - get, attain.

4.perverse (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - विकृत, उल्टा, असामान्य
English Meaning - contrary to what is accepted or expected; abnormal, contradictory, illogical, distorted.

5.slant (noun)

Hindi Meaning - झुकाव, दृष्टिकोण
English Meaning - a particular point of view or perspective; angle, viewpoint, bias, leaning.

6.grapple with (phrasal verb)

Hindi Meaning - किसी समस्या से जूझना, सामना करना
English Meaning - tackle, confront, deal with, face.

7.galloping (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - तेज़ी से बढ़ता हुआ, तेजी से फैलता हुआ
English Meaning - increasing or developing rapidly; rapidly growing, escalating, accelerating, snowballing.

8.non-communicable diseases (noun)

Hindi Meaning - गैर-संचारी रोग
English Meaning - medical conditions that are not transmissible directly from one person to another; chronic diseases, lifestyle diseases, non-infectious illnesses.

9.epidemic (noun)

Hindi Meaning - महामारी, किसी रोग का व्यापक प्रकोप
English Meaning - a sudden, widespread occurrence of a particular undesirable phenomenon; outbreak, scourge.

10.advancing age (noun)

Hindi Meaning - बढ़ती उम्र
English Meaning - the process of growing older; aging, elderliness, seniority.

11.shocker (noun)

Hindi Meaning - चौंकाने वाली बात
English Meaning - something that causes sudden surprise or dismay; bombshell, revelation, surprise, blow.

12.World Obesity Day (March 4) (proper noun)

Hindi Meaning - विश्व मोटापा दिवस
English Meaning - an annual global campaign to raise awareness about obesity; obesity awareness day.

13.body mass index (BMI) (noun)

Hindi Meaning - शरीर द्रव्यमान सूचकांक
English Meaning - a medical standard used to measure body fat based on height and weight; weight-to-height ratio.

14.suggest (verb)

Hindi Meaning - संकेत देना, बताना
English Meaning - indicate, show, point to, imply, demonstrate.

15.chronic illnesses (noun)

Hindi Meaning - दीर्घकालिक बीमारियाँ
English Meaning - health conditions that last for an extended period; long-term diseases, persistent conditions, prolonged ailments, enduring maladies.

16.hypertension (noun)

English Meaning - a medical condition characterized by abnormally high blood pressure; high blood pressure, arterial hypertension, cardiovascular stress, elevated blood pressure.

17.due to (phrase)

English Meaning - as a result of something; because of, owing to, attributable to.

18.cardiovascular (adjective)

English Meaning - relating to the heart and blood vessels; heart-related, circulatory, vascular, cardiac.

19.chronic (adjective)

English Meaning - persisting for a long time or constantly recurring; persistent, long-term, long-lasting, prolonged.

20.catch them young (phrase)

English Meaning - to intervene or educate children at an early stage; target early, train young, shape early, guide early, engage prematurely, mentor young, influence prematurely.

21.obese (adjective)

English Meaning - excessively overweight in a way that is unhealthy; corpulent, fleshy, heavy, plump, stout, chubby.

22.gamut (noun)

English Meaning - the complete range or scope of something; spectrum, range, sweep, compass.

23.metabolic diseases (noun)

English Meaning - disorders that disrupt the normal metabolic processes of the body; metabolic disorders, metabolic syndromes, systemic illnesses.

24.World Obesity Atlas 2026 (proper noun)

English Meaning - an annual report providing global obesity trends; obesity report, global health index,.

25.BMI rate (noun)

English Meaning - the specific numerical value of a person’s Body Mass Index.

26.tail (verb)

English Meaning - follow, track, shadow, pursue.

27.attendant (adjective)

English Meaning - occurring with or as a result of something; accompanying, associated, related, linked.

28.unacceptably (adverb)

English Meaning - intolerably, unreasonably, unsatisfactorily, inappropriately.

29.off the charts (phrase)

English Meaning - at a very high or unexpected level; extremely high, record-breaking, extraordinary, unprecedented.

30.indicator (noun)

English Meaning - sign, signal, measure, index.

31.attribute (verb)

English Meaning - ascribe, assign, accredit, connect.

32.hyperglycaemia (noun)

English Meaning - an excess of glucose in the bloodstream; high blood sugar, elevated glucose, blood sugar spike, excess sugar.

33.metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) (noun)

English Meaning - a condition characterized by a buildup of fat in the liver linked to metabolic dysfunction; fatty liver disease, hepatic steatosis, metabolic liver disorder, lipid-induced hepatopathy.

34.metabolic (adjective)

English Meaning - relating to the chemical processes that occur within a living organism; metabolic-related, energy-processing, biochemical, cellular.

35.dysfunction (noun)

English Meaning - an abnormality or impairment in the operation of a specified bodily organ or system; impairment, breakdown, malfunction, failure.

36.steatotic (liver) (noun)

English Meaning - an organ characterized by the abnormal retention of fat; fatty liver, lipid-filled liver, steatotic organ, fat-infiltrated liver.

37.project (verb)

English Meaning - forecast, predict, estimate, calculate.

38.substantially (adverb)

English Meaning - to a great extent; significantly, considerably, materially, largely.

39.adult-onset (adjective)

English Meaning - referring to a disease manifesting in adulthood; late-onset, adult-acquired, non-juvenile, mature-onset.

40.onset (noun)

English Meaning - the beginning of something, especially something unpleasant; beginning, start, commencement, inception.

41.broadly (adverb)

English Meaning - generally, mainly, largely.

42.categorise (verb)

English Meaning - classify, group, sort, bracket.

43.insufficient (adjective)

English Meaning - not enough; inadequate, deficient, lacking, sparse.

44.consumption (noun)

English Meaning - the action of eating or drinking something; intake, eating, drinking, ingestion.

45.sub-optimal (adjective)

English Meaning - of less than the highest standard or quality; less than ideal, inadequate, substandard, inferior.

46.breast feeding (noun)

English Meaning - suckling, lactation, maternal feeding.

47.stem (verb)

English Meaning - halt, stop, check, curb.

48.tide (noun)

English Meaning - a powerful trend of events; trend, current, wave, movement.

49.stem the tide (phrase)

English Meaning - to stop something from increasing or continuing; halt the decline, stop the flow, check the growth, arrest the spread.

50.growing (adjective)

English Meaning - increasing, expanding, rising, mounting, escalating.

51.World Obesity Federation (proper noun)

English Meaning - an international organization leading global efforts to combat obesity.

52.call for (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - demand, request, require, urge.

53.emphasis (noun)

English Meaning - special importance or prominence given to something; importance, significance, stress, weight.

54.monitoring (noun)

English Meaning - observation, surveillance, tracking, supervision.

55.in terms of (phrase)

English Meaning - with regard to; regarding, concerning, with respect to, as regards.

56.sugar levy (noun)

English Meaning - a tax placed on sugary drinks or foods; sugar tax, sweet tax, dietary surcharge, sugar duty.

57.levy (noun)

English Meaning - an act of imposing or collecting a tax; tax, tariff, duty, toll.

58.sincere (adjective)

English Meaning - genuine, honest.

59.implementation (noun)

English Meaning - execution, application, enforcement, realization.

60.global physical activity (noun)

English Meaning - overall bodily movement and exercise undertaken by populations worldwide; worldwide fitness, physical exertion.

61.mandatory (adjective)

English Meaning - compulsory, obligatory, binding, essential.

62.besides (preposition)

English Meaning - in addition to; apart from, other than, excluding, as well as.

63.primary health (noun)

English Meaning - the basic healthcare provided to individuals in a community; basic health, fundamental health, core well-being, primary care.

64.worrisome (adjective)

English Meaning - causing anxiety or concern; alarming, troubling, disturbing, concerning.

65.associate with (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - link to, connect with, relate to, pair with.

66.catch up (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - level up, draw level, keep pace, match.

67.head towards (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - move towards, proceed towards, point towards, aim for.

68.grey path (noun)

English Meaning - a trajectory leading toward an aging demographic or uncertain future; aging trajectory, dismal future, grim course, uncertain path.

69.hollow out (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - undermine, deplete, gut, erode.

70.the way out (noun)

English Meaning - a method or means of resolving a difficult situation; solution, exit, answer, remedy.