Topic 1: Lancet Study: India sharing the double burden of obesity and malnutrition.

Why in News?

• India has seen a steady increase in obesity levels not only in adults but among children too over the last 32 years. Simultaneously the prevalence of undernutrition has also remained high in the country.
• As a result, India has become one of the countries with a high “double burden,” according to a new Lancetstudy, which examined the trends of malnutrition across the world over the last 32 years.

What are the parameters of being obese and underweight?

• According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), obesity is an abnormal or excessive accumulation of fat that poses health risks. It is a long-term (chronic) health condition that progresses over time.
• An adult is classified as underweight if their Body Mass Index (BMI) falls below 18 kg/m².

What is the possible reason for obesity and malnutrition among Indians?

• The Lancet study attributes the prevalence of undernutrition and obesity to a dearth of access to affordable and nutritious food.
• While insufficient access to food can result in undernutrition, increased availability of processed foods rich in fats, salt, and sugar has fuelled the obesity epidemic.
• Various genetic studies have shown that obesity is extremely heritable, with numerous genes identified with adiposity and weight gain.
• Other causes of obesity include reduced physical activity, insomnia, endocrine disorders, medications, the accessibility and consumption of excess carbohydrates and high-sugar foods, and decreased energy metabolism.

Why rising case of obesity is a cause to worry?

• As per National Institute of Health Obesity is associated with cardiovascular disease, dyslipidemia, and insulin resistance, causing diabetes, stroke, gallstones, fatty liver, obesity, hypoventilation syndrome, sleep apnea, and cancers. The association between genetics and obesity is already well-established by multiple studies.

What are the major causes of malnutrition in India?

• It accompanies poverty, disturbed family structure, ignorance and despair. Lack of awareness of nutritional qualities of food, irrational beliefs about food, inappropriate child rearing and feeding habits all lead to under nutrition in the family.

Topic 2: Supreme Court’s ban on Patanjali advertisements

Why in News?

The Supreme Court’s ruling has imposed a temporary ban on all forms of advertisements for Patanjali’s medicinal products

What is the case?

• The case, which dates back to August 2022, revolves around a petition filed by IMA (Indian Medical Association) in response to a Patanjali advertisement titled: “MISCONCEPTIONS SPREAD BY ALLOPATHY: SAVE YOURSELF AND THE COUNTRY FROM THE MISCONCEPTIONS SPREAD BY PHARMA AND MEDICAL INDUSTRY.”

In the petition, two grievances were presented:

• Firstly, that the company, Patanjali, is consistently and deliberately disseminating false or misleading information about allopathic medicine.
• Secondly, that Patanjali is making exaggerated claims about its drugs, purportedly based on scientific and evidence-based medicines.

On November 21 last year, a Supreme Court Bench comprising Justices Hima Kohli and Ahsanuddin Amanullah issued a warning to Patanjali, cautioning the company against advertising permanent cures.

• The Court threatened to impose a penalty of ₹1 crore for every product for which such claims are made. Despite the ongoing debate between “Allopathy v. Ayurveda,” the Court refused to engage in it at that time.
• Patanjali assured the Court that there “shall not be any violation of any law(s), especially relating to advertising or branding of products,” and further committed that “no casual statements claiming medicinal efficacy or against any system of medicine will be released to the media in any form.”
• Subsequently Patanjali Ltd failed on both counts. It actually went ahead and claimed its products are more effective than chemical-based synthetic medicines of allopathy.

What does the law say on such claims by a Pharmaceutical Company?

• The Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954 regulates false medical advertisements in India. People or entities can be sentenced to up to six months imprisonment, and/or a fine for the first offence. The period of imprisonment can extend to one year for a second offence. The CPA also penalises misleading advertisements and carries a more stringent sentence that can extend to two years.
• In addition, the Drugs Magic Remedies Act prohibits any “misleading advertisement,” which “directly or indirectly” gives a false impression regarding the true character of the drug, makes a false claim for the drug, or “is otherwise false or misleading in any material particular.”

What legal action has been taken against Patanjali?

• The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) and the Uttarakhand Ayurvedic and Unani Services issued a notice in 2022 to withdraw misleading ads. The Uttarakhand body in 2023 ordered Patanjali to remove all ads and also banned the production of five drugs. The ban was reversed four days later. Patanjali has dismissed these cases as part of a conspiracy designed by an “anti-Ayurveda drug mafia.”

What next?

• Such misleading ads are not only unlawful, but also pose a risk to public health by spreading misinformation about evidence-based treatments that prey on the vulnerable, public health experts argue.
• As of now, the Court’s ruling has imposed a temporary ban on all forms of advertisements for Patanjali’s medicinal products. Additionally, it refused to allow ads “without adjectives.” The Court reiterated its previous warning regarding the denigration of modern medicine treatments, emphasizing that “allopathy cannot be degraded/defamed in the eyes of the public like this.” This underscores the seriousness with which the Court views the matter and its commitment to protecting the integrity of allopathic medicine in public perception.

• Patanjali’s lawyer has characterized the Supreme Court’s temporary ban as ‘unfair’ and asserted that the company is “entitled to advertise” its products. This indicates the legal stance taken by Patanjali in response to the ban imposed by the Court.

• The case is scheduled to be heard next on March 19, indicating that the legal proceedings regarding the ban on Patanjali’s advertisements will continue and further deliberations will take place on that date.