Our children are at risk of obesity due to bad eating habits

People have not only spoiled their health through their bad eating habits but they have also put their children’s health at risk. Obesity invites deadly diseases. Recently, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare released the first part of the fifth report of the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) conducted in the year 2019-20, in which it has been revealed that malnutrition and obesity among children are increasing in our country. This report is a reference to a survey of about 22 states and it has been stated that obesity among children under 5 years of age is increasing rapidly in 20 states. This may be due to the lack of attention women pay to their own food and children’s health. Even before this, it was revealed in the National Nutrition Survey that not only children from illiterate or poor families but also children from educated and rich families are getting away from nutritious food.
In a country where educated women are reluctant to feed their newborns with their own nutritious milk, it cannot be expected that they will show seriousness in giving nutritious food to their children. There can be two main reasons for the lack of nutritious food for the children of poor people; one is poverty and the other is that some poor families produce more children. The reason why children of rich families stay away from nutrition is food, their mothers do not pay attention to their children’s food and drink because parents are in a race to earn more money. In our country, nowadays people have started imitating other countries in food and drink, especially Chinese-fast food. People have forgotten to take care of their health. Some people also make their children eat fast food which has a negative impact on their health. Today, the health of children in India is deteriorating due to poor nutrition. Children have to fight eye, tooth, and stomach diseases at an early age. Some women do not feed their babies properly to save time; thus they become enemies of the health of their family members and children.

Vijay Garg is a columnist, a retired Principal from Malout, Punjab, and writes mostly on education-related issues

Vijay Garg