Compared with their better-fed peers, nutrition-deficient individuals are more likely to have infectious diseases such as pneumonia and tuberculosis, which lead to a higher mortality rate.
The prevalence of underweight children in India is among the highest in the world and is nearly double that of Sub Saharan Africa with dire consequences for mobility, mortality, productivity, and economic growth.
[6] The 2019 Global Hunger Index (GHI) report ranked India 102nd out of 117 countries with a serious issue of child wasting.
[7][8] Though more than a quarter of the population is still living below the National Poverty Line[9] its economic growth indicates new opportunities and a movement towards increase in the prevalence of chronic diseases which is observed in at high rates in developed countries such as United States, Canada and Australia.
The combination of people living in poverty and the recent economic growth of India has led to the co-emergence of two types of malnutrition: undernutrition and overnutrition.
Research has conclusively shown that malnutrition during pregnancy causes the child to have an increased risk of future diseases, physical retardation, and reduced cognitive abilities.
This poverty does not directly lead to malnutrition but it leaves a large chunk of the population without adequate amounts of food.
[13] According to the Registrar General of India, the mortality of children under the age of five was about 59 out of every 1000 live births which is one of the highest rates in the world.
It can lead to stunted growth, impaired cognitive ability, reduced school performance, and diseases like diarrhea.
[16] A study published in Nature Sustainability says that long term exposure to high PM 2.5 levels may be a cause of anemia among women, with their model showing a 7.23% increase in anemia among women of reproductive age for every 10 μg per cubic meter increase in PM 2.5 exposure.
The same study posits that India fulfilling it's clean air targets would reduce the nationwide prevalence of anemia among women of reproductive age from 53% to 39.5%.
PDS system in India which account for the distribution of wheat and rice only, by which the proteins are insufficient by these cereals which leads to malnutrition also.
Also, other Indians are strictly vegan, which means, they do not consume any sort of animal product, including dairy and eggs.
States with the lowest percentage of under-nutrition include Mizoram, Sikkim, Manipur, Kerala, Punjab, and Goa, although the rate is still considerably higher than that of developed nations.
[18] Dual burden is characterized as undernutrition in the form of obesity or underweight, existing within an individual and/or at a societal level.
The rate of anemia varied depending on the woman's maternity status, education, household wealth, and region.
[30] This control affects a woman's autonomy to make decisions in regards to providing food, what type and amount, which leads to adverse nutrition results for herself, and family members.
India's performance in child malnutrition has been worse than countries in its neighbourhood with similar per capita incomes, and social makeup.
[37] These include setting up community kitchens, adding pulses and millets to the Public distribution system and continuing the school Midday Meal Scheme.
[38][independent source needed] The government of India started a program called Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) in 1975.
The campaign is based on five "C": The multi-pronged strategy shows that a health issue like malnutrition can be tackled with the help of behaviour change communication (BCC) and other social aspects.
[citation needed] India is a signatory to the 27 survival and development goals laid down by the World Summit on children 1990.
To implement these goals, the Department of Women & Child Development has formulated a National Plan of Action on Children.
A Monitoring Committee under the Chairpersonship of Secretary (Women & Child Development) reviews the achievement of goals set in the National Plan of Action.
[41] A Mangalorean doctor Edmond Fernandes piloted a project curated through the Edward & Cynthia Institute of Public Health in collaboration with Women and Child Minister of Karnataka Halappa Achar from the BJP and demonstrated proof of concept to End Malnutrition burden in India.