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NDTV
28-05-2025
- Health
- NDTV
World Nutrition Day 2025: How To Add More Nutrients To Everyday Indian Meals
Every year on May 28, World Nutrition Day serves as a global reminder of the vital role that nutrition plays in overall health and well-being. The day promotes awareness around healthy eating habits, the importance of balanced diets, and the need to tackle malnutrition in all its forms- undernutrition, obesity, and micronutrient deficiencies. It is a reminder of the dual importance of eating well and choosing foods that support environmental sustainability. It's a call to action for individuals, communities, and governments to prioritise local, seasonal, and minimally processed foods that are good for the body. For Indian households, this day is especially relevant. With a rich legacy of plant-based diets and seasonal cooking, Indian cuisine naturally aligns with sustainable food practices. The challenge lies in reviving and enhancing these habits for modern lifestyles. Mr. Shridhar Venkat, CEO of the Akshaya Patra Foundation, tells us, "On the occasion of World Nutrition Day, we are reminded that nutrition is the foundation of good health, which can be achieved by enhancing everyday meals with balanced nourishment. According to PM POSHAN (NFSA), mid-day meals should provide 450 calories and 12 grams of protein for children studying in classes I-V and 700 calories and 20 grams of protein for children in classes VI-VIII. Early nutrition shapes cognitive development, school performance, and long-term well-being, ultimately influencing the economic and social fabric of nations." World Nutrition Day 2025: Here Are 7 Easy Ways To Add More Nutrition To Indian Meals: A well-balanced plate can be enriched with diverse pulses and legumes-such as dal, chana, and rajma-which serve as excellent protein sources. Whole grains like millets (ragi, jowar, bajra), alongside staples like rice and wheat, boost fibre intake and provide essential nutrients for sustained energy. By incorporating diverse seasonal vegetables, whole grains, and locally available ingredients, we can ensure meals are rich in essential vitamins and proteins. 1. Rethink Your Grains Indian kitchens revolve around grains- rice, wheat, jowar, bajra, and ragi. To add more nutrients, start by mixing up your grain game. Swap out polished white rice for brown rice or millets. Millets like foxtail (kangni), little millet (kutki), and barnyard millet (sanwa) are rich in fibre, iron, and magnesium. Try combining whole wheat flour with ragi or bajra for rotis to increase the intake of calcium and iron. Also Read: Fact Check: Foods Rich In Carbs Can Be Healthy Too, Here's A List 2. Power Up Your Pulses Pulses are a staple, but we often overlook their full potential. Soak dals overnight and sprout them to improve digestibility and enhance vitamin C and B complex absorption. Include a variety of lentils in your weekly meals- masoor, chana, moong, urad- not just for taste but to ensure a diverse nutrient profile. Cooking dals with a tadka of mustard seeds, curry leaves, garlic, and asafoetida (hing) not only enhances flavour but improves gut health too. 3. Add Colour With Seasonal Vegetables Indian thalis are known for their variety, but it's easy to fall into a routine with the same few vegetables. Use the rainbow rule- aim to include colourful vegetables like pumpkin, spinach, red bell peppers, carrots, and beetroot. Each colour represents different phytonutrients and antioxidants. Try stir-frying or steaming vegetables to retain maximum nutrients, and avoid overcooking, which often depletes their value. 4. Don't Forget Fermented Foods Fermented foods like curd, dosa batter, idli, kanji, and pickles are traditional Indian superfoods. They are rich in probiotics that support gut health and improve digestion. Including a serving of fresh curd or buttermilk in daily meals can help maintain healthy gut flora, which is essential for absorbing vitamins and minerals efficiently. 5. Fortify Your Cooking Oils Instead of sticking to just one type of oil, rotate between mustard oil, groundnut oil, sesame oil, and coconut oil to balance fatty acid profiles. Cold-pressed and filtered oils retain more nutrients. Also, try including a few seeds like flaxseed, sunflower, or chia, as toppings or in chutneys to increase omega-3 intake. 6. Smart Snacking and Sides Replace fried snacks with roasted chana, nuts, makhana, or homemade laddoos made from jaggery and seeds. Add nutrient-dense sides like leafy green theplas, methi parathas, or chutneys made with mint, coriander, curry leaves, or flaxseeds. 7. Finish With Fruits End meals with a fruit instead of sugary desserts. Papaya, guava, amla, and oranges are rich in vitamin C and fibre. Seasonal fruits are cost-effective and nutritionally richer than cold storage imports. World Nutrition Day 2025 reminds us that mindful eating can be both culturally rooted and forward-thinking. By making simple, sustainable changes to our daily meals, we can nourish our bodies the right way.
Fashion Value Chain
28-05-2025
- Health
- Fashion Value Chain
Dr. Payal Kanodia Honoured with ‘Custodian of Humanity Award 2025' for Outstanding Contributions to Social Impact and Healthcare
In a remarkable recognition of her unwavering dedication to social transformation, Dr. Payal Kanodia, Chairperson & Trustee of M3M Foundation, has been awarded the Custodian of Humanity Award 2025 in the distinguished category of Social Activist & Healthcare Personality of the Year (Women). The award was conferred at a prestigious ceremony jointly organised by Medgate Today and GMAAF (Global Medical and Allied Awards Forum) at the Constitution Club of India, New Delhi. Dr. Payal Kanodia Honoured with 'Custodian of Humanity Award 2025' for Outstanding Contributions to Social Impact and Healthcare In her acceptance speech, Dr. Payal Kanodia shared 'I am deeply honoured to receive the Custodian of Humanity Award. This recognition is not just mine-it belongs to every woman, every child, and every underserved individual whose resilience fuels our mission at M3M Foundation. For me, healthcare is not a privilege-it is a fundamental right. As we continue to work toward a more inclusive and self-reliant India, I remain committed to fostering access, dignity, and empowerment for all. Awards like these are a reminder that empathy backed by action can indeed change the world.' The Custodian of Humanity & HPIE Awards 2025 celebrated over 50 trailblazers and institutions from across India for their exemplary contributions to healthcare innovation, medical excellence, and social impact. An esteemed jury panel, comprising notable figures from the healthcare and medical technology landscape, oversaw this year's selection process. Jurors included Afzal Kamal, Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief, Medgate Today; Rajiv Nath, Managing Director, HMD and Forum Coordinator, AIMED; Prof. Dr. Rajesh C. Shah; Jatin Mahajan, Managing Director, J Mitra & Co.; Dr. Y. P. Bhatia, CMD, Astron Group; and Brig. Dr. Anil Kohli, Padma Shri awardee and former President, Dental Council of India. Dr. Kanodia's award highlights her pioneering leadership in the areas of inclusive development, rural health equity, and women-centric social reform. Under her direction, M3M Foundation-CSR arm of the M3M Group-has significantly expanded its footprint across education, healthcare access, skill development, climate action, and women and child welfare, impacting over 4.8 million lives across 22 states and 3 union territories. M3M Foundation's healthcare vertical spans a broad spectrum-from mobile health clinics, preventive care camps, and iClinics in underserved communities to its flagship POSHAN initiative, which has served over 21 million nutritious meals to migrant families and labourers. The Foundation also runs awareness campaigns on menstrual health, maternal care, mental well-being, and chronic illness prevention-all led by a community-based, data-driven approach. This award reinforces Dr. Kanodia's reputation as one of India's leading women philanthropists, who seamlessly blends vision with execution. A Kettlebell World Champion, public speaker, and purpose-driven investor, she embodies the spirit of the new generation of change makers-graceful in leadership, grounded in service. The event concluded with a pledge from all awardees to continue their service toward building a healthier, more inclusive India.
The Hindu
16-05-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
The ingredient to turn around nutrition outcomes
The analysis of India's free foodgrain programme for 800 million people underscores a grim reality: that hunger and malnutrition remain pressing concerns. Yet, in India's long battle against malnutrition, women and girls remain the most overlooked section. Despite steady economic progress and numerous welfare schemes, nutritional inequality continues to be deeply gendered. Launched in 2018 with the vision of a malnutrition-free India by 2022, the Prime Minister's Overarching Scheme for Holistic Nourishment (POSHAN) Abhiyaan has the aim of improving nutrition for pregnant women, lactating mothers, adolescent girls, and young children. However, stark disparities persist. Structural failures The National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-5 reveals that 57% of women in the age group 15 to 49 years are anaemic, in comparison to 26% of men; nearly one in five women are underweight. In other words, women are far more likely to be malnourished than men in India. These figures point to structural failures in how we address nutrition. Even after merging schemes into 'POSHAN 2.0' and investing heavily, the needle has not moved enough for women. Indeed, POSHAN Abhiyaan is India's largest nutrition programme with a hefty budget. In 2022-23, the Ministry of Women and Child Development was allocated nearly ₹24,000 crore for Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0, but by December 2022, only 69% of those funds had been utilised. Despite such spending, the prevalence of anaemia among women actually rose from 53% to 57% between the last two NFHS rounds, and about 18.7% of women remain underweight. This contrast suggests that just pumping in resources into a women-centric nutrition scheme is not enough. In many Indian households, especially the poorer ones, women's nutritional needs are literally last in line. Entrenched cultural norms often mean that when food is scarce, women and girls eat least and last. Thus, malnutrition is not just a biomedical or food-supply issue; it is a social justice issue. If a woman lacks economic independence or decision-making power, she may have little control over her diet and health. Even government data underscores this link: the NFHS-5 found that 49% of women lack decision-making power over how their own earnings are spent. This financial dependence often translates into compromised nutrition — a result of gender-based deprivation. The issue of empowerment Studies have shown that empowering women financially is one of the most effective ways to improve nutrition. Nobel laureate Esther Duflo, for instance, finds that when women control extra income, they are more likely to spend it on nutrition and children's well-being. In a study we conducted among low-income communities, we observed that women with even a modest independent income or control over household spending were far less likely to be undernourished. The missing piece in India's nutrition puzzle is women's economic and social empowerment. The state of women's employment suggests that female labour force participation has risen from about 23% in 2017-18 to around 33% in 2021–22 — a positive shift on paper. But a vast majority of working women are in insecure, low-paying jobs. According to the Periodic Labour Force Surveys, as of 2021-22 only 5% of working women held a regular salaried job, while nearly 20% were self-employed (mostly in small-scale or informal activities). Moreover, self-employed women earned on average 53% less than men in similar work. In effect, many women who do work are barely earning enough to survive, employment has not yet translated into the power to make decisions or invest in their own nutrition and well-being. Thus, it is not enough to get women into the workforce; the quality and security of their jobs matter just as much. Without skills training, equal pay, and access to stable employment, women remain economically vulnerable even when they work. As a result, even well-intentioned nutrition programmes such as POSHAN will have limited impact if women cannot afford or are not empowered to consume the nutritious food being provided. Government reports praise Poshan Abhiyaan for creating awareness and a 'Jan Andolan' around nutrition, but awareness alone cannot fill an empty stomach. Need for convergence If POSHAN 2.0 aims to eliminate undernutrition, it should work in tandem with schemes that boost women's incomes and status. First, it must set measurable targets not just for reducing anaemia or stunting, but also for increasing the proportion of women with independent incomes and decision-making power. Second, it must break the silos, making sure that nutrition, health, and livelihood departments work together on joint interventions in high-malnutrition districts. Third, it must use Anganwadi centres and health workers to not only distribute food and supplements but also to connect women with skill training, credit schemes, or job opportunities. An Anganwadi can double as a one-stop hub for women's welfare (meals, antenatal care, financial literacy workshops). Ultimately, a malnutrition-free India will be possible only when women are not seen as passive beneficiaries of nutrition schemes but as active agents driving the health and the prosperity of their families. Divya Bharti is a Researcher and Faculty Associate, KIIT School of Management
