Indian couples inspire each other to adopt unhealthy lifestyles

Indian couples tend to inspire each other to adopt unhealthy lifestyles and dietary patterns, says a first-of-its-type study examining marital concordance of obesity and associated risk factors. Health researchers from premier Indian institutes including the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) studied data collected from 52,737 married couples in the National Family Health Survey (2019-2021). The study reveals that obesity is highest in South India, in particular among middle-aged couples, with Kerala leading with 51.3 percent followed by Jammu & Kashmir, Manipur, Delhi, Goa, Tamil Nadu and Punjab.

“Our findings indicate this alarming health paradox where we are witnessing an increase in the prevalence of lifestyle and metabolic conditions like obesity among the affluent and educated sections. The higher rate of obesity in middle-aged couples could be due to the fact that often companions tend to either become adjusted or decide to adopt unhealthy dietary lifestyles of their partners after years of living together,” says Prashant Kumar Singh, lead author of the study and scientist, Division of Preventive Oncology and Population Health at ICMR.

Child obesity overtakes undernutrition among children globally 

The prevalence of obesity among school-age children and adolescents in all regions of the world except sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, has for the first time, surpassed undernutrition (9.4 percent vs. 9.2 percent). According to the report, which draws on data from over 190 countries, the prevalence of undernutrition among children aged 5-19 years has declined since 2000, from 13 to 9.2 percent, while obesity has increased from 3 to 9.4 percent. An estimated 188 million children and adolescents aged 15-19 years worldwide are obese, placing them at risk of life-threatening diseases. The report attributes rising obesity to a shift from traditional diets to cheap, energy-dense, processed foods.

“When we talk about malnutrition, we no longer talk about underweight children. Obesity is a growing concern that can impact the health and development of children. Ultra-processed food is increasingly replacing fruits, vegetables and protein at a time when nutrition plays a critical role in children’s growth, cognitive development and mental health,” says Catherine Russell, Unicef Executive Director.

Chronic insomnia raises risk of dementia

People suffering from chronic insomnia experience faster decline in memory and thinking skills as they age, says a study published in Neurology (September). The study tracked a group of 2,750 healthy adults with an average age of 70 for 5.6 years. Of the participants, 16 percent suffered chronic insomnia. After accounting for factors such as age, high blood pressure, and sleep medications usage, the study found that people with chronic insomnia had a 40 percent higher risk of developing mild cognitive impairment or dementia, than those who slept well.

“Insomnia doesn’t just affect how you feel the next day — it may also impact your brain health over time. We saw faster decline in thinking skills and changes in the brain that suggest chronic insomnia could be an early warning sign and a contributor to future cognitive problems,” says study author Diego Z. Carvalho, MD of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota (USA).

Smoking & vaping increase Type 2 diabetes risk

Smoking, vaping and smoking ‘smokeless tobacco’ significantly raises the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, according to a new study presented at the annual meeting of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes. Researchers analysed medical data of over 3,300 people with Type 2 diabetes and 3,900 without. All of them had either age-related diabetes, obesity-related diabetes, severe insulin-deficient diabetes and severe insulin-resistant diabetes. The researchers found that any participant of any subtype who smoked — either currently or in the past — was at a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes than those who had never smoked.

“We wanted to find out if smoking plays the same role in all subtypes, or if some groups are more vulnerable than others. This is important because different subtypes may have distinct underlying disease mechanisms, and learning how smoking is linked to subtypes can help us understand the biology of diabetes. It may also help in developing more tailored prevention strategies,” says Emmy Keysendal, a Ph D student at the Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institute, Sweden.