No Shortcuts To Treating Obesity; Prioritise Lifestyle Modification Over Drugs, Says Dr. Jitendra Singh

Amid the growing hype surrounding weight-reducing medicines, Union Minister Dr. Jitendra Singh who is a practising diabetologist and former professor of medicine has cautioned against indiscriminate use of such anti-obesity drugs.

Such medications, said the Science and Technology Minister, must be prescribed and consumed judiciously, based on scientific evidence and clinical need. Speaking at the inaugural session of the two-day Asia Oceania Conference on Obesity (AOCO), Dr. Singh underscored that obesity is a complex, chronic and often relapsing disorder, not merely a cosmetic or lifestyle concern.

He called for a “whole-of-society” approach to address what has fast become one of India’s most urgent public health challenges, driven by sedentary living, unhealthy diets and increasing dependence on quick-fix solutions.

“Formal approvals for weight-reducing drugs do not tell the entire story,” he cautioned, warning against commercial over-promotion, misuse, and unrealistic public expectations. At the conference, which brought together clinicians, researchers and policy experts from India and abroad recalled how widespread adoption of refined oils in earlier decades, though initially promoted for health benefits, led to unintended long-term consequences.

Some of the leading experts in the field including Dr. Kyoung Kon Kim,, Dr. Volkan Yumuk, Dr. Mahendra Narwaria, Dr. B.M. Makkar, Dr. Banshi Saboo and others attended the inaugural session.

Drawing an analogy, he remarked that just as economics is too serious a subject to be left to an economist alone, obesity is too serious a subject to be left to a physician or epidemiologist alone, as it has deep social, cultural, and environmental roots.

“We must remain vigilant about misinformation, especially in the digital age where unverified claims spread rapidly,” he added.

Noting that nearly 63 per cent of deaths in India are linked to non-communicable diseases that share risk pathways with obesity, Dr. Singh said conditions including type-2 diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular disease and certain cancers are associated with unhealthy weight gain and visceral fat accumulation. Central obesity, he pointed out, is particularly prevalent among Indians and confers independent metabolic risks even when body weight appears within normal limits.

The Minister cautioned against the growing commercialization and misinformation surrounding obesity management, warning that unscientific claims and so-called quick-fix solutions often mislead people and distract them from evidence-based care.

While acknowledging the role of medically supervised pharmacotherapy and bariatric interventions in select cases, Dr. Singh emphasised that sustainable weight management requires continued lifestyle modification—balanced diets, physical activity, adequate sleep, stress reduction and community awareness. He said the Centre’s initiatives—including FIT India, Khelo India, Ayushman Bharat, and efforts to integrate traditional Indian knowledge systems through the Ministry of Ayush—reflect a national shift towards preventive and promotive health.

He stressed that formal approvals alone do not always tell the full story in clinical practice, recalling how the widespread adoption of refined oils in earlier decades led to unintended long-term health consequences. Emphasising the need to protect public interest, he called for sustained efforts to counter myths and disinformation, particularly through the responsible use of modern media and digital platforms.

“It is unprecedented for a Prime Minister to repeatedly address obesity and lifestyle-related diseases from national platforms,” Dr. Singh said, referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s emphasis on simple, sustainable adjustments in daily habits.

He underlined that preventing obesity-related illnesses among youth is essential for realising the vision of a developed India by 2047. “We must talk not only to those who know, but also to those who do not know that they do not know,” he remarked, stressing the need for public communication beyond medical conferences.

During the event, Dr. Singh also launched the AIAARO Obesity Registry, which aims to strengthen the country’s research ecosystem through systematic data collection and evidence-based insights for policy formulation.

The AOCO conference, a flagship meeting of the Asia Oceania Association for the Study of Obesity (AOASO) has been organised by the All-India Association for Advancing Research in Obesity in India. Delegates said coordinated, multi-sectoral action is essential to address obesity not merely as a medical condition but as a societal challenge requiring behavioural, environmental and cultural shifts.