Nearly one in three Indian women aged 15-49 years is now overweight or obese, up from one in four women five years ago, according to data released by the Central government. The latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS-6) found that 30.7% of women aged 15-49 years were overweight or obese in 2023-24, compared with 24% in NFHS-5 (2019-21). Among men in the same age group, the proportion rose from 22.9% to 27.3%.
“The concept is not new to Ayurveda. The traditional system has described garbhadana samskara , a pre-conception regimen aimed at preparing prospective parents physically and mentally before conception. In Ayurveda, conception is described through four factors — ritu , the appropriate fertile period; kshetra , a healthy reproductive tract; beeja , the healthy sperm and ovum; and ambu , adequate nourishment.
The approach is now being offered as a structured programme at the SDM College of Ayurveda and Hospital in Udupi, Karnataka, which has been providing pre-conception counselling and care to couples from different parts of south India,’’ Mamatha K.V., principal and senior obstetrician at the institution, said. “Interventions are tailored around these factors, with dietary and lifestyle changes and, where considered appropriate, traditional therapies,’’ Shreyashri Suvarna, a physician at the hospital, said, adding that traditional interventions need to be individualised and clinically supervised.
