But our changing eating habits are not reflected only through a chain of restaurants anymore. The onslaught of fast food and soft drinks is actually beginning to affect Indians in places where it hurts most. Their purses and their health. Today, an average Indian family spends less on cereals and more on packaged refreshments (chips, cookies and salties), and processed food. The household budget has been reworked to spend less on milk and milk products and much, much more on beverages and soft drinks. Obviously, we Indians have begun to believe what we see, on TV, in magazines, and on hoardings. We believe that packaged ‘atta’ noodles are more nutritious than fresh rotis, and that sugary cookies will provide more energy to the school going children, than plain homemade fare. The trendy cola vending machines in the school canteens add to this delusion. No wonder Neha with her cola can finds Aparajita’s  love for lime juice hopelessly ‘uncool’…. 

No, this is not a trend that is visible only among urban middle class and rich. Rural India and poor households, both in villages and cities, are also under the spell of this fast food phenomenon. According to the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO), in rural households, where as little as Rs 225 per month is available for each member of the family, Rs 6 is spent on processed food and beverages!! No wonder the fast food and soft drink majors are fighting with each other to grab the rural market. The Atlanta-based Coca Cola, in fact, was the first to spot the potential of  the rural markets. And images of   the most popular movie stars of the day, guzzling colas were unleashed on village folks, through hoardings, handouts and of course, the omnipresent television. Result? Today, Coca Cola India claims that 80 per cent of its new consumers are from rural India. It introduced a 200 ml bottle, priced at Rs 5, only to cater to this crowd. 

Eating ourselves sick
Yes, that is exactly what we are doing. The drastic change in what the Indians eat has had an impact on their health, especially the younger ones. With the advent of this pizza, burger and chips culture, the average per capita fat consumption has risen sharply, both in rural and urban India. Result? “An increase in calorie intake which disturbs our metabolic activity. This, along with a sedentary life style, lead to an increase in chances of obesity, which has become a rule, rather than an exception in the upcoming generation,” says Navjeet Talukdar, heart specialist at the Batra Hospital and Research Centre, Delhi. Type 2 diabetes and heart diseases, which come as ‘free gifts with obesity, are also on the rise.   

So in India, we not only have diseases of the poor (malnutrition, child mortality), now the diseases of the so-called rich are growing enormously. Most rampantly among the young.

It will be really foolish and blind to deny that the current advertising-saturated culture contribute heavily to this unhealthy trend. 

Who is responsible?
Actually all of us. Let me tell you how.

The makers
Certainly the advertising agencies and the companies who employ them—to find new and more effective ways of ‘hooking’ the kids—must shoulder a major share. Are they ready for it? Let’s take stock.

In the US, during the 1970s and 80s several attempts were made in the US to institute restrictions on advertising to children and to require nutrition information in certain food ads. These efforts met with strong opposition from the food industry and eventually failed. Even now, the sugar and food industry dismiss any link between diet and obesity as bad science. But consumer and parent advocates have taken up this issue with great vigour now. And the pressure is mounting.

In India, the advertising agencies have formed an association called the Advertising Agencies’ Association of India (AAAI), which is supposed to function like a watch dog body.  It formulates rules, regulations and guidelines to be followed by the AAAI . ‘But in practice it has no teeth at all, and succumbs to pressure from any of the members,” laments Chaudhury of VOICE, “The most they do is to withdraw ads if there is an uproar over them”.

Clearly, ad makers and sponsors—who are actually raking in the lucre from the commercials—are unwilling to reverse the trend.

The regulators
The WHO declares ‘that governments have a responsibility to ensure that advertising is not misleading, is informative, and is unlikely to contribute to ill-health and obesity, a particular concern in the case of children’.

While many countries are taking there job very seriously, many of them are not. Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland do not permit commercial sponsorship of children’s programs. Sweden and Norway do not allow any television advertising to be specifically directed to children under12, and no ads are allowed during children’s programming. Australia does not allow ads during programmes for preschoolers, and the Flemish region of Belgium disallows any ad in the five minutes immediately preceding and following children’s programs. In other countries like Finland and Germany no direct add on offers (like discounts or free gifts) are allowed, and Italy prohibits using cartoon figures is prohibited.

In India, the scenario is rather pathetic. Here, there are no specific guidelines about what is ‘acceptable’ for advertisements aimed at children.  If there is a serious complaint about a particular ad by a consumer forum or an individual, it is vetted by the Advertising Standards Council, and withdrawn if required.

So, again, it is left to consumers to keep the pressure on...

We, the consumers
Yes, the solution lies with us. We are vulnerable to the attack of the ads, only if we allow ourselves to be the victims. The key strategy is to become ‘ad literate’. Confused? Let me explain.

As I have told you earlier, ad agencies use every trick in the trade to promote their products—often sending out messages that can at best be called half truths. Ad literacy will help us not to take everything that we see at face value. It makes us think and view critically and then make choices.

In other words, it will protect us from being manipulated by the media. And not let brands control us or our self worth.

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