Table 2 Daily per capita caloric intake comparison by food groups
Table 2 Daily per capita caloric intake comparison by food groups
|
EAT-Lancet
|
Sectors
|
Highest MPCE Decile
|
Lowest MPCE Decile
|
Regions
|
Urban
|
Rural
|
Urban
|
Rural
|
Urban
|
Rural
|
North
|
South
|
East
|
West
|
North East
|
Central
|
Whole grains1
|
811
(32%)
|
1008 (47%)
|
1251 (56%)
|
846 (28%)
|
1320 (41%)
|
1050 (65%)
|
1138 (70%)
|
1147 (48%)
|
1031 (45%)
|
1293 (57%)
|
904 (44%)
|
1382 (67%)
|
1313 (60%)
|
Potato and Cassava
|
39
(2%)
|
52 (2%)
|
63 (3%)
|
56 (2%)
|
58 (2%)
|
56 (3%)
|
58
(4%)
|
59 (2%)
|
15 (1%)
|
77 (3%)
|
32 (2%)
|
47 (2%)
|
46 (2%)
|
Vegetables
|
78
(3%)
|
53 (2%)
|
46 (2%)
|
76 (2%)
|
77 (2%)
|
31 (2%)
|
27
(2%)
|
59 (3%)
|
45 (2%)
|
52 (2%)
|
46 (2%)
|
45 (2%)
|
49 (2%)
|
Fruits2
|
126
(5%)
|
46 (2%)
|
28 (1%)
|
121 (4%)
|
80 (3%)
|
10 (1%)
|
5
-
|
37 (2%)
|
50 (2%)
|
30 (1%)
|
41 (2%)
|
29 (1%)
|
20 (1%)
|
Dairy Foods
|
153
(6%)
|
183 (9%)
|
145 (7%)
|
357 (12%)
|
365 (11%)
|
49 (3%)
|
27
(2%)
|
303 (13%)
|
124 (5%)
|
110 (5%)
|
147 (7%)
|
63 (3%)
|
89 (4%)
|
Protein sources
|
726
(29%)
|
164 (8%)
|
135 (6%)
|
247 (8%)
|
283 (9%)
|
80 (5%)
|
65
(4%)
|
124 (5%)
|
276 (12%)
|
133 (6%)
|
192 (9%)
|
110 (5%)
|
121 (6%)
|
All Animal source proteins
|
151
(6%)
|
34 (2%)
|
26 (1%)
|
60 (2%)
|
67 (2%)
|
11 (1%)
|
6
-
|
15 (1%)
|
80 (4%)
|
40 (2%)
|
41 (2%)
|
58 (3%)
|
14 (1%)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Beef and lamb
|
15
(1%)
|
6
-
|
4
-
|
8
-
|
12
-
|
2
-
|
0
-
|
4
-
|
11
-
|
3
-
|
3
-
|
9
-
|
1
-
|
Pork
|
15
(1%)
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
01
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
-
|
13 (1%)
|
-
|
Poultry (Chicken & other)
|
62
(2%)
|
9
-
|
7
-
|
17
-
|
17
-
|
2
-
|
1
-
|
4
-
|
15
-
|
10
-
|
10
-
|
9
-
|
6
-
|
Eggs
|
19
(1%)
|
11
-
|
6
-
|
19
-
|
13
-
|
4
-
|
2
-
|
6
-
|
16 (1%)
|
9
-
|
10 (1%)
|
11 (1%)
|
3
-
|
Fish
|
40
(2%)
|
9
-
|
9
-
|
17
-
|
24 (1%)
|
3
-
|
3
-
|
1
-
|
38 (2%)
|
18 (1%)
|
19 (1%)
|
17 (1%)
|
3
-
|
Legumes3
|
426
(17%)
|
108 (5%)
|
94 (4%)
|
140 (5%)
|
164 (5%)
|
65 (4%)
|
57
(3%)
|
105 (4%)
|
108 (5%)
|
86 (4%)
|
116 (6%)
|
50 (2%)
|
97
(4%)
|
Tree nuts4
|
149
(6%)
|
22 (1%)
|
15 (1%)
|
47
(2%)
|
52 (2%)
|
4
-
|
2
-
|
3
-
|
88 (4%)
|
7
-
|
34 (2%)
|
2
-
|
10
-
|
Added fats
|
450
(18%)
|
272 (13%)
|
208 (9%)
|
370 (12%)
|
375 (12%)
|
138 (8%)
|
105 (6%)
|
259 (11%)
|
226 (10%)
|
206 (9%)
|
313 (15%)
|
150 (7%)
|
206 (9%)
|
Palm Oil5
|
60
(2%)
|
155 (7%)
|
95 (4%)
|
223 (7%)
|
202 (6%)
|
55 (3%)
|
38
(2%)
|
86 (4%)
|
156 (7%)
|
65 (3%)
|
244 (12%)
|
34 (2%)
|
167 (8%)
|
Unsaturated Fats6
|
354
(14%)
|
102 (5%)
|
108 (5%)
|
105 (3%)
|
148 (5%)
|
82 (5%)
|
66
(4%)
|
151 (6%)
|
66 (3%)
|
139 (6%)
|
59 (3%)
|
114 (5%)
|
34 (2%)
|
Dairy Fats
|
0
(0%)
|
16
-
|
5
-
|
43 (1.4%)
|
26
-
|
1
-
|
0
-
|
23
-
|
3
-
|
2
-
|
11 (1%)
|
2
-
|
6
-
|
Lard
|
36
(1%)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
All sweeteners
|
120
(5%)
|
114 (5%)
|
103 (5%)
|
140 (5%)
|
203 (6%)
|
66 (4%)
|
48
(3%)
|
151 (6%)
|
113 (5%)
|
85 (4%)
|
112 (5%)
|
62 (3%)
|
106 (5%)
|
Processed Food7
|
|
216 (10%)
|
200 (9%)
|
803 (26%)
|
368 (12%)
|
121 (7%)
|
130 (8%)
|
204 (9%)
|
336 (15%)
|
244 (11%)
|
231 (11%)
|
165 (8%)
|
208 (10%)
|
Spices8
|
|
40 (2%)
|
35 (2%)
|
51 (2%)
|
63 (2%)
|
22 (1%)
|
18
(1%)
|
32 (1%)
|
60 (3%)
|
32 (1%)
|
38 (2%)
|
20 (1%)
|
31 (1%)
|
Total
|
2503
|
2150
|
2215
|
3068
|
3192
|
1623
|
1620
|
2376
|
2276
|
2261
|
2054
|
2073
|
2190
|
Values in kcal and % of daily total calorie consumption
Lighter font represents sub groups within major food groups
MPCE (Monthly Per Capita Expenditure) signifies classification of population by economic level. Highest and lowest MPCE refers to the richest and poorest 5% of the population respectively.
1Whole grains consist of cereals like rice, wheat, wheat flour and other cereals like jowar, bajra, maize, barley, millets and ragi
2Fruits consists of all fruits and raisins, dates and other dried fruits
3Legumes consists of all pulses and groundnuts,
4Tree nuts consist of coconut, coconut green and coconut-copra (dried), cashew nuts, walnuts and other nuts
5Palm oil contains vanaspati, refined and edible oil
6Unsaturated oil contains mustard, groundnut and coconut
7Processed Food includes rice products, chira, khoi, lawa, muri, bread, bakery products, suji, maida, jowar products, besan, other gram products, cold and hot beverages, outside cooked meals including snacks, prepared sweets, namkeen, chips, pickles, sauce, jams, jelly, ice cream, biscuits, chocolates
8Spices include all spices like Ginger, garlic, jeera, dhania, turmeric, black pepper, dry chillies, tamarind, curry powder, oilseeds and other spices
- Below 1%
Data not available in NSS on lard
The poorest 5% of the population consumes less than the suggested calories for all food groups except whole grains, tubers and starchy vegetables and processed food. Within this group there is little rural-urban variation.
Cereals and Starchy Vegetables: About one third (811 kcals) of the total calorie content of the EAT Lancet reference diet comes from whole grains. Diets in India derive almost half of its calories from whole grains. Caloric intake of whole grains is greater than the reference diet for all groups but is markedly high for richest 5% in rural areas, North East and Central regions of India (Table 2 and Table 3).
Table 3 Difference in calories consumed in India and proposed by EAT-Lancet reference diet for Whole grains and Tubers and starchy vegetables
|
Whole grains
|
Tubers and Starchy vegetables
|
Urban India
|
197
|
13
|
Rural India
|
440
|
24
|
Highest MPCE -Urban
|
35
|
17
|
Highest MPCE -Rural
|
509
|
19
|
Lowest MPCE- Urban
|
239
|
17
|
Lowest MPCE -Rural
|
327
|
19
|
North India
|
336
|
20
|
South India
|
220
|
-24
|
East India
|
482
|
38
|
West India
|
93
|
-7
|
North East India
|
571
|
8
|
Central India
|
502
|
7
|
Values in kcal
Whole grains consist of cereals like rice, wheat, wheat flour and other cereals like jowar, bajra, maize, barley, millets and ragi
Protein sources: When compared to the reference diet, low caloric intake from protein source (both plant and animal-based) food can be seen across all sectors, states, regions and income groups (Table 2 and 3 and Fig. 1 and 2). The deficit is more in the rural parts of India where only 6% of the total caloric intake comes from protein sources in comparison to 29% in the EAT-Lancet diet (Table 2).
Fig. 1 Caloric intake* deficit of vegetables, fruits, legumes and animal source proteins (chicken, other poultry, eggs, lamb, beef, pork and fish) as compared to the reference diet.
Darker colour depicts higher calorie difference between actual consumption and reference diet.
*Difference between actual consumption and the daily per capita calorie intake suggested by the EAT-Lancet reference. State level caloric intake calculated using population weights for rural and urban populations. Values for Telangana same as that for Andhra Pradesh.
|
Even for the richest 5% of the population, calories from protein sources is less than half of the 726 kcal in the reference diet for both rural and urban India. The poorest Indians get below 100 kcal per day from protein sources. Amongst regions, North-east Indian diets get lowest calories from protein sources (Fig. 1 and Table 2).
Table 4 Difference in calories consumed in India and proposed by EAT-Lancet reference diet for Legumes and Tree Nuts
|
Legumes
|
Tree nuts
|
Urban India
|
-318
|
-127
|
Rural India
|
-332
|
-134
|
Highest MPCE -Urban
|
-286
|
-102
|
Highest MPCE -Rural
|
-262
|
-97
|
Lowest MPCE- Urban
|
-361
|
-145
|
Lowest MPCE -Rural
|
-369
|
-147
|
North India
|
-321
|
-146
|
South India
|
-318
|
-61
|
East India
|
-340
|
-142
|
West India
|
-310
|
-115
|
North East India
|
-376
|
-147
|
Central India
|
-329
|
-139
|
Values in kcal
Legumes consists of all pulses and groundnuts,
Tree nuts consists of coconut, coconut -green, coconut -dried, cashew nuts, walnuts and other nuts
Fig.2 Caloric intake from various animal-based protein sources
Values in kcal
|
Diets of the highest and lowest income groups also vary when compared for, calories consumed from fruits, vegetables, fats and animal-source proteins and overall calorie consumed (Table 2).
The EAT-Lancet reference diet advocates only “low to moderate” quantities of seafood and poultry and “no to low” amount of red meat or processed meat. Animal-source proteins constitute 6% of the total caloric intake of the reference diet. All types of Indian diets analysed involve less animal-based food than this benchmark. South Indian diets and diets of the highest income group have proportionally higher caloric intake from meat (Fig. 1 and Fig. 2) as compared to other groups largely due to higher consumption of poultry, fish and eggs (Fig.2). Consumption of red meat (beef, lamb and pork) is low in India (Table 2 and Fig.2).
Fig. 3 Difference of Vegetables and Fruits caloric intake between the proposed EAT-Lancet reference diet and sectors, MPCE fractile and regions in India
Values in kcal
|
Fruits and Vegetables: Dietary diversity is considered key feature for high
quality diets (15)(16). The reference diet is largely plant based with fruits and vegetables accounting for 204 kcal (8%) of the daily calorie intake. All kinds of Indian diets analysed consume less than half of the 126 kcal from fruits recommended in the reference diet (Table 2 and Fig. 3). Diets of the highest income group in urban areas has the highest relative caloric intake of fruits (4%) which is still lower than the reference diet (Table 2). The difference in relative caloric intake of fruits and vegetables is acute in both rural and urban areas and shows little variation across regions.
Oils and fats: Indians get less calories from added fats in comparison to the 18% in the reference diet (Table 2). This is despite increase of 3.5% in the consumption of oils and fats between 1993-94 and 2011-12 in both rural and urban areas as per NSS data. Figure.4 suggests that Indians in general consume less of the healthier oils & fats and more of the unhealthier saturated fats like palm oil.
Palm oil is high in unhealthy saturated fat and is the chief ingredient of the widely consumed vanaspati (partially hydrogenated vegetable oil) in India.
Fig. 4 Caloric intake difference for added fats between sector, MPCE fractile classes and regions in India and proposed EAT-Lancet reference diet.
Values in kcal
|
The consumption of vanaspati is known to have risen by 51% between 1993-94 and 2011-12 and it is widely used for cooking at home, restaurants, street vendors and for processed food production. (17). Figure.4 also shows that the highest caloric consumption of palm oil is among the highest income groups. Among regions, highest consumption is in the western and central India.
It should be noted that the consumption of fat in India might be higher than reflected in this data as food group ‘added fat’ does not include fat content of packaged food and meals consumed outside of the home.
Fig. 5 Proportion of daily per capita caloric intake from processed food by sectors, MPCE fractile classes and regions in India
Values in kcal
|
Processed Food: EAT-Lancet commission suggest small amounts of processed food and it is not included as separate food group in the reference diet. However, it had been regarded as separate group in this analysis owing to its high proportion in the Indian Diets. Based on the food items in the consumption data from NSS 68th round, items like rice products, chira(flatten rice), khoi, lawa and muri (puffed rice), bread, bakery products, suji (semolina), maida(refined wheat flour), jowar products, besan(chickpea flour), other gram products, cold and hot beverages, outside cooked meal including snacks, prepared sweets, namkeen, chips, pickles, sauce, jams, jelly, ice cream, biscuits, chocolates have been included in the category of processed food along with meals consumed outside of home. These types of food, normally high in sugar, salt, saturated fat and processed flour and are considered unhealthy and often linked to obesity/overweight and NCDs (18) (2) (19) (20) (21) (22) (23).
Processed food accounts for around one tenth of the total caloric intake in both rural and urban India (Table2 and Fig. 5). The highest income group in the urban sector consumes more than one fourth (26%) of their total daily calories in the form of processed food (Fig.5). Across regions, proportion of processed food in the total calorie intake is highest for South Indian diets and lowest for North Eastern diets in India (Table 2).
Spices like ginger, garlic, coriander powder (dhania) and turmeric constitute 1-2% of total caloric consumption in rural and urban India. |