Macro partitioning
Indian diets exhibit a significant caloric deficit in protein sources (6-8% of total calories) compared to the EAT-Lancet reference diet (29%), driven by low consumption of legumes, animal proteins, and tree nuts across all income and geographic groups.
Current Indian dietary patterns, even among the wealthy, fail to provide adequate protein, contributing to health issues. To align with healthy standards, individuals must significantly increase intake of protein-rich foods like legumes, nuts, dairy, and potentially animal proteins, while reducing the disproportionate share of calories derived from cereals.
The share of calories from protein sources is only 6–8% in India compared to 29% in the reference diet. The imbalance is highest for the households in the lowest decile of consumption expenditure, but even the richest households in India do not consume adequate amounts of fruits, vegetables and non-cereal proteins in their diets.
Why this rating
Based on a large, nationally representative sample (102,000 households) using standardized expenditure surveys, though it is observational and cross-sectional.
Source
A comparison of the Indian diet with the EAT-Lancet reference diet
Manika Sharma et al. · BMC Public Health · 2020
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