Obesity can seem straightforward to explain. If a person consumes more calories than they need, they gain weight. And the solution seems even simpler. Eat less, shed more. Diet, exercise. Viola! We have a perfect solution. Except it is not. Obesity is a chronic disease, an epidemic, on the verge of a pandemic – if we may, that has swamped the entire world. In India alone, the number of obese people has doubled in the last ten years, with 30+ million obese population. And if what we have said so far has not driven home the message, here is what will – more than 30% of urban kids suffer from obesity. Yes, kids!

So, whereas we have people dying due to undernutrition, we have obese people on the other side of the spectrum. Double whammy! And like an iceberg, the real reasons are what you don’t see. The devil, as they say, is in detail. Obesity is influenced by genetics, physiology, environment, job, education, and what is going on in the brain. So, is all lost then, you may ask? Unless we accept obesity as a disease, ask the right people the right questions, and challenge the wrong – a resounding no! With the proper care, persistence, and determination, people can create that dent in their weight – metaphorically and actually! While obesity is about gaining weight, it takes more than what it gives. It erodes self-confidence, can be the subject of bullying, building walls of insecurity, leading to the valley of depression. People label and stigmatise – lazy and greedy. And we have not even started on other diseases it triggers.