One in every 10 adolescents in India had experimented with smoke or smokeless forms of tobacco, one-fourth were insufficiently physically active, 6.2% adolescents were overweight, and nearly half of them consumed salted and fried Indian savouries at least once a week.
These are some of the findings of a pan-India survey of adolescents aged 15 to 17 years as part of the national non-communicable disease (NCD) targets and indicators framework to be achieved by 2025.
The survey was coordinated by the Indian Council of Medical Research — National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research (NCDIR) with 10 reputed implementing research institutes/organisations across India in urban and rural areas.
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The multi-centric survey results on NCD risk factors and school-based health promotion activities, which are crucial to address the future burden of NCDs, have been published in
Skipped breakfast
According to the survey, adolescents from urban areas had a higher proportion of risk factors than from rural areas. “On an average, breakfast was skipped for 10 days in a month, slightly more in rural areas. Only two-thirds reported being imparted health education on NCD risk factors in their schools/ colleges, and lower proportions observing health promotion material displayed,” said Prashant Mathur, Director of NCDIR, who is the lead investigator of the survey.
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“This study offers national evidence for revisiting and framing appropriate policies, strategies for prevention and control of NCDs in younger age groups. The published result on adolescents fills the national-level data gaps for this vulnerable age group, helps to assess India’s progress towards the set NCD targets for 2025 and gives a new impetus to focus on this age group,” he said.
“India needs to focus on strengthening existing policies, plan more effective risk reduction strategies and health promotion programmes specific to adolescents towards a healthy adulthood,” he pointed out.