HEALTH AND WELL BEING-INDIA YET TO WAKE UP

Eating habits of people are determined more or less in the first few years of life, evolved mostly by the food environment and parental guidance. Broadly world can be divided into three groups based on their staple foods which could be rice, wheat or corn. Cassava and yam are other staples popular in African continent but not to the same extent as the three main food crops mentioned above. Health afflictions like CVD, diabetes, hypertension, obesity etc are caused mostly by over consumption and diets predominantly unbalanced nutritionally. Specialty foods targeted at those caring for well being and good health are emerging as a major distinct category and their manufacture is growing phenomenally in wealthy countries because of increasing incidence of diet related health disorders among the population there. Though in India also the life style health disorders are becoming more and more conspicuous, the people are not yet sensitive to this problem. Specialty foods/well being foods with less calories or low fat or low sugar or low sodium or high dietary fiber are now available in many countries to cater to those in need of them but in India the market for these type of foods is still in its infancy. Attempts by consumer food giants to launch health focused foods do not seem to be making any headway as reflected by their failure to click in the market.

"A consumer might compromise on the frequency of consumption, but not on taste. Though there is a general alarm over lifestyle diseases like obesity and diabetes, it seems the manufacturers are fretting more than the consumers,"she said. According to her, in India, the eating habits have not evolved yet to western levels where the consumer is far more conscious of what he eats and almost always wants natural to eat and drink. "In India, sugary juices still trail 100 per cent natural ones, and health drinks represent a very minuscule market share when compared to the cola giants and sugar free ice creams are almost unheard of," she added. At the same time, the executive said that the market will take at least a decade more to grow to such a state that food and beverage makers could spin sustainable businesses around health foods and drinks".

According to a recent report, India is the only country which has chucked the trend of increasing BMI with increasing GDP as evident in many developed countries. At the same time India is also being branded as the diabetic capital of the world. How far these statistics can be relied upon is another matter. Whether the population affected by such health problems is small or big, there is a felt need for at least sugar-free foods, low fat foods, and low sodium foods to cater to people suffering from diabetes, CVD and hyper tension. While developing such foods industry should not have a mindset to exploit these unfortunate victims by charging exorbitantly to make them beyond their reach.

V.H.POTTY http://vhpotty.blogspot.com/ http://foodtechupdates.blogspot.com