Abstract
South Asian countries have experienced a remarkable economic growth during last two decades along with subsequent transformation in social, economic and food systems. Rising disposable income levels continue to drive the nutrition transition characterized by a shift from a traditional high-carbohydrate, low-fat diets towards diets with a lower carbohydrate and higher proportion of saturated fat, sugar and salt. Steered by various transitions in demographic, economic and nutritional terms, South Asian population are experiencing a rapidly changing disease profile. While the healthcare systems have long been striving to disentangle from the vicious cycle of poverty and undernutrition, South Asian countries are now confronted with an emerging epidemic of obesity and a constellation of other non-communicable diseases (NCDs). This dual burden is bringing about a serious health and economic conundrum and is generating enormous pressure on the already overstretched healthcare system of South Asian countries. The Nutrition transition has been a very popular topic in the field of human nutrition during last few decades and many countries and broad geographic regions have been studied. However there is no review on this topic in the context of South Asia as yet. The main purpose of this review is to highlight the factors accounting for the onset of nutrition transition and its subsequent impact on epidemiological transition in five major South Asian countries including Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Special emphasis was given on India and Bangladesh as they together account for 94% of the regional population and about half world's malnourished population. This study is literature based. Main data sources were published research articles obtained through an electronic medical databases search.
Highlights
Globalization of agrifood has brought about remarkable shifts in diet patterns especially in developing countries
By virtue of increased participation in global trade, South Asian nations have experienced a period of unprecedented economic growth, higher income level, provision of labor-saving technologies, and a significant reduction in the number of people living in extreme poverty
The study sheds some light on the impacts of nutrition transition on the emergence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in South Asia
Summary
Globalization of agrifood has brought about remarkable shifts in diet patterns especially in developing countries. Changes in dietary pattern have shown to be a major underlying factor for increasing prevalence of obesity and associated NCDs. With long standing history of infectious diseases, developing countries are facing a rising tide of non-communicable diseases which is popularly known as the double burden of malnutrition (Coexistence of over- and undernutrition). With long standing history of infectious diseases, developing countries are facing a rising tide of non-communicable diseases which is popularly known as the double burden of malnutrition (Coexistence of over- and undernutrition) This dietary transition is basically characterized by a shift from a diet with a higher proportion of carbohydrate based foods such as cereal grains (rice, wheat, maize), vegetables (leaves, roots, legumes) and low animal products (meat, egg, milk) to one which is lower in carbohydrate and higher in animal-based food with high sugar and caloric content and larger amount of processed food (chocolates, soft drinks). New references were added for the suggested sentences. (39-40)
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